


Wish Upon A Spark

by Alazan



Category: Gravity Falls, Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Hale Family, BAMF Stiles, Everyone Is Alive, Fix-It, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Globnar, I Don't Even Know, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Weirdmageddon, Sheriff Stilinski's Name is John, Slow Build Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Stiles is Dipper and Mabel's Cousin, Tags May Change, Time Wish, What Was I Thinking?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-30
Updated: 2017-08-20
Packaged: 2018-05-17 01:17:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5848201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alazan/pseuds/Alazan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Sheriff thinks Stiles needs some time away from Beacon Hills. When he finds out his niece and nephew, Mabel and Dipper, will be heading to their Great Uncle's place in Gravity Falls, Oregon, he decides to do the same with Stiles. </p><p>Stiles spent the summer with the twins, Grunckle Stan, Soos, Wendy, and the rest. He's faced the supernatural of Gravity Falls, helped find the Author, battled against Gideon, argued with Robbie, and did his part in Weirdmageddon. Just before he goes home though once it's all said and done at the end of the summer, he's challenged in Globnar and comes out victorious. He gets a paradox free time wish.<br/>---<br/>When Derek gets a call saying to come back home ASAP, he never imagined what was awaiting him. His family, his pack (Erica and Boyd included) are back from the dead, plus some others! And Stiles is the one responsible?! But...where is he?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Let's just assume that Stiles joined the gang about a week or so after Dipper and Mabel arrived to Gravity Falls. So Stiles was there through all the summer shenannigans.
> 
> I know I have a ton of other things up update but I'm totally obsessed with Gravity Falls right now.

"Yo Stinky, Wendy around?" Robbie asked as he looked around for the redhead. 

Stiles rolled his eyes and grabbed his sling shot and aimed an eraser at the back of Robbie's head. Once he had his target in sight, he fired. 

"Nice one!" Dipper exclaimed, fist pumping the air. 

"TEN POINTS!" Mabel cheered as she high-fived Stiles. 

Robbie turned around, angry with his fist raised. Stiles, having fought plenty of monsters and dealt with Jackson most of his life, didn't miss a beat. He picked up Stan's billiard 8-ball walking stick, twirled it between his fingers and jabbed Robbie's chest with it. (Thank you Kira for some Japanese Style fighting lessons!)

"Got something to say, Valentines?" Stiles asked with a smirk. 

"It's _Valentino_." Robbie hissed. 

"Like it matters. But you've spent over five minutes within this establishment without purchasing any of the fine merchandise. I'll kindly ask you leave. Exiting fee is $5." Stiles responded in a serious voice. 

"I am _not_ paying to leave here!" When Robbie stormed to the door, he found it jammed. He turned around to Stiles and demanded, "Open the door, dweeb!"

"Fives bucks."

"Open it!"

"Six bucks."

"I'm not joking around."

"Neither am I. Ten bucks." 

"WHAT!? How do you jump from six to ten?" Robbie demanded.

"With math. Want me to make it $15?" Stiles asked with a sly smirk. 

Robbie grabbed his hair and pulled, groaning. He pulled out his wallet and slammed a $10 bill on the counter. "Now let me out!"

Stiles grinned happily as he placed the bill in the register. "Soos. Door."

Soos opened the door from the other side and let Robbie through. Then he saluted Stiles before heading back out again. 

"Kid...that was beautiful." Stan came out of the back and wiped a fake tear from his eye. "Who'da thunk a sheriff's kid could be so mischievously cunning?"

"Oh come on Grunkle Stan, Stiles is family. Course he's gonna be all Pine-tacular!" Mabel exclaimed. 

"Tricksters value rules as much as rule-followers. Can't break a rule if there aren't any, and the better you know them, the easier it is to get away with stuff." Stiles explained.

"Kids, take notes. Wise man speaking." Stan instructed.

"Did I hear Robbie?" Wendy asked as she came from the back. 

"You should probably get your ears checked, because you did, and his voice is annoying." Stiles replied. 

"Nice!" Dipper fist bumped him.  
"Heh!" Stan slapped his shoulder.  
"Ha!" Mabel high fived him. 

Wendy punched his shoulder playfully, "Jerk. Robbie's not that bad."

"There are plenty of words I can use to describe Robbie, but since I'm in the presence of a lady, children, and a senior citizen, it's best I don't." Stiles replied.

Wendy scoffed a bit, "Whatever dude. Anyway, I'm heading out to hang with the gang. You ought to come. It'll be great fun."

"I'd love to but I'm expecting a call soon. I'll catch hell from my own fiery red-headed friend from Beacon if I don't answer." Stiles shrugged nonchalantly.

"You should come anyway when you're done." Wendy pressed on.

"What do you say Grunkle Stan?" Stiles asked the old man.

"I got no problem with it. Dipper can cover closing for you." Stan said.

" _What_? What do _I_ have to do it? What if I'm invited?" Dipper demanded. 

"Sorry dude, but we were thinking of going to see the new movie. It's rated R." Wendy apologized. 

"See, Dipper'll handle it. Now get goin' before I decide you gotta do some over time." Stan ordered.

Wendy saluted him before turning to Stiles, "Text me, bro."

Once she was going Mabel spoke, "I think Wendy likes Stiles."

"Totally." Stan agreed.

"Most definitely." Soos joined in as he entered the Shack.

" _Oink oink_." Waddles added.

" _What_? No she doesn't...I mean...uh..."

 "Don't worry, Dip. I like Wendy, but just as friends. Sides, it's almost time for me to go home. Long distance relationships never work out." Stiles said as he nuggied Dipper's head lightly. 

Dipper chuckled nervously and sheepishly. 

"Truer words were never spoken..." Mabel said sadly as she took out a picture of Mermando.

Dipper sighed, "But what if Wendy _does_ like you like you? Even if it's only a summer romance. After all the junk we've been through this summer, she deserves a good romantic experience."

Stiles rolled his eyes, "Dipper, there are too many factors in me not going out with Wendy. One, you're my bro. It's against the bro-code. Two, and maybe that should be one but don't judge me I have ADHD, we're family. I can't do that to family. Three, like I said, it's almost time we all head back to California and well...yeah, we're gone. Long distance doesn't work that well with romance. Four, she reminds me a bit too much of an ex-crush who...well, we're friends now too, but it still too hard not to make comparisons and that just can't be done in a relationship."

"He's right." Mabel nodded with mature confirmation of that last reasoning. Soos nodding along too. 

"Five-"

"Geeze, what? You gonna give out the ten commandants for this crud?" Stan asked as he rolled his eyes. 

"I like making lists, Is that a problem?" Stiles retorted. 

"Just sayin'!" Stan retorted back. 

"Anyway, five...I'm kinda focusing on the mind and the soul. I'll leave the heart for a bit down the road." Stiles said as he gave Dipper a gentle smile. 

Dipper returned it. He and Stiles were a lot a like. Dipper was sure he'll be like Stiles when he gets older, and thinks it's awesome. The fact that Wendy seems to really like Stiles, makes him happy. Sure, it also made him jealous...but Stiles respected his feelings, which made it hard to be jealous. But it made liking him even easier. 

* * *

 

"OHMYGOSH, STILES!" Mabel cried as she and Dipper ran to their cousin. 

"Stiles! Are you alright?"

"H-how long...have I...b-been gone?" Stiles asked between pants. He was bruised and cut up, and his breathing was irregular. 

The twins shared a concerned look. 

"Like...five minutes? Maybe?" Mabel shrugged. 

"Where did you go?" Dipper asked.

"Globnar..." Stiles replied weakly.

"WHAT?!" The twins exclaimed in unison. 

Stiles sighed, "Look...I dunno how or why but..."

"No, no, we know what it is. But...why- _who_ \- challenged you?" Dipper asked.

Stiles looked at both of them oddly before shaking his head a bit. "His name's Matt...or was. I'm not even sure. Apparently he time traveled from the past to my present and I thought he died, but apparently he didn't. He wanted revenge or something and challenged me to Globnar."

Dipper and Mabel looked at each other before looking back at their cousin, then back at each other. They had a silent conversation before Mabel asked gently, "So...what did you wish for?"

Before Stiles could even open his mouth to answer, his phone rang. It was Lydia. He picked up, and before he could say something, he heard the question that he was asking himself.

**_"What did you do?"_ **

* * *

 

"I dunno how I feel about sending you off lookin' like that. Your old man's never gonna let you come back. You sure you don't wanna stay a bit longer?" Stan asked as they packed up El Diablo with Stiles's things. 

The plan had been that he'd go back with the Twins but seeing as he's cause... _something_ , he was heading home early. 

"Given Weirdmageddon, I think we're all a little worse for ware." Stiles replied. At the look of his Great Uncle, he added, "I'd love to stay. You know I love it here as much as the twins, but...I've made trouble I gotta deal with."

"You mean you fixed things. I get it kid. I knew since you arrived that you carried more burden on your shoulders than any teenager should. Trust me...I _know_ what that's like. All I'm sayin' is...you ever need a safe haven to run away to, the Shack's open."

Stiles smiled, but knowing how much Stan 'hated' sentimentality, he added, with a faux skeptical expression, "What's the catch?"

"Weekend boating trip and all the jokes in the joke book." Stan replied, knowing what Stiles was doing.

Stiles pretended to think about it, "That's a steep price...but I'll think about it."

"Do." Stan agreed. And then asked, "Whatta ya doin' for Spring-break?"

"Something illegal probably." Stiles automatically replied.

Stan laughed and slapped Stiles's shoulder, "Well, always remember, you've got family up here. And we're leaves from the same tree...or whatever people say."

* * *

 

"I figured I'd find you here."

Stiles turned away from his mother's grave stone to look at Lydia and offered her a slight smile. He turned back to his mother's stone as Lydia joined him. 

"I thought you'd be with Allison or Aiden." Stiles commented after a pause. 

"Allison's with her dad and Aiden's with Ethan." Lydia replied. There was a bit of silence before she continued. "Scott's with Kira as they talk things out. Parrish is with your dad trying to help the Hales regain a sense of what's been going on. It's weird...it seems like only those of the pack remember what really happened. Anyone else...as far as they know, the Hales escaped an almost tragedy." 

"I was selfish." Stiles replied.

Lydia turned to look at him with a confused expression. "Stiles...I'm not sure _how_ you did it, but you did an impossible feat. You brought back a family and others who, let's face it...didn't mean as much to you as they did others. You _could_ have brought back your mother...why didn't you?"

Stiles took his time to answer, and Lydia could almost see the cogs turning in his head. Given the sensitive matter of the situation, she waited patiently for him to come to a conclusion. 

"She died..." Stiles finally decided. It was a statement. Clipped, short, to the point. "It was so damn hard losing her. Up until the crap we went through after Scott got bitten, it was the worst thing that ever happened to me...sometimes, it still is. But...the world kept turning. Nothing too drastic changed with her leaving us. Dad still had to go to work, I still had to go to school. We suffered, but the world still kept going...

"The Hales though...when they died, everything went to shit. Sure it wasn't immediate, but it happened. They protected Beacon Hills for generations...when they died, they took all their knowledge with them. All those bitten afterward had no clue, no idea...no real help. Any information we needed had to be bribed, threatened, or bought out after serious negotiation. Sometimes we even had to steal it or hope against hope that we'd get lucky." Stiles paused as he took a deep breath, and Lydia could see how his eyes were glossed over with unshed tears. "It just seemed logical- to bring _them_ back- instead of her."

"I don't see how that's selfish. In fact...it seemed like the opposite. You're putting the safety of the town before your own desires. And I mean...you also brought back Allison, Aiden, Erica, and Boyd."

"Heather too...and Harris." Stiles added. Then he licked his lips before continuing. "I could have wished that Kate had never set them on fire. That she'd get caught or figured out or something..."

"Have it be so Scott never got bitten at all..." Lydia mumbled. Already piecing together what Stiles was getting to. 

Stiles nodded. "I could have made it so we'd never know unnecessary death and misery...but I was selfish. I...I didn't want to go back to a life where I wasn't friends with you and Malia and Kira and Liam. I didn't want to go back to a life where me and Scott are at the bottom of the food chain. Gods know if the Hales ever would have figured out Malia was stuck as an animal or what they'd do with that information...but it was mostly that...I...I didn't want to be alone." Stiles turned to look at her, tears falling free, "I'm sorry Lydia."

"For _what_?" She asked, exasperated. 

"You could have had the perfect life...and-"

"And _nothing_!" She cried, stopping him. "I used to be afraid of showing people how smart I was. I was so consumed by society's rules that said I couldn't be both beautiful and intelligent that I chose to give into my vanity. But _you_ made me realize I could be both because I was! And _hello_! Scott may have been bitten, but some of us were _born_ something else! Let's face it, my grandmother was _still_ a Banshee locked up in Eichen. I would  _still_ a Banshee even if Scott remained human. You were always so helpful to me, even when I didn't deserve it. When, and I'm sure it's when not if, my Banshee powers presented themselves regardless of werewolves or not, you would have been drawn into the supernatural world anyway because of me! So I'm glad you were selfish and kept us as a pack. Kept us as a family with _all_ our memories. Because it's _scary_...and being alone sucks! It's pure insanity, as you know, so remaining as we are..if it's selfish, you're not the only one who is...okay?" Lydia asked as she took his hands in hers. They were both crying, emotional about the mess that's become their lives. Stiles nodded and Lydia pulled him into a tight embrace that he eagerly returned. 

* * *

 

Stiles groaned as he flopped onto his bed. It'd been a long day. 

He wanted to make sure himself that all the Hales were really back, and they were. They were also housing Erica and Boyd. Lydia tells him that Chris has paid for Isaac's ticket so he'll be on the next available flight. Stiles never thought he'd see Chris Argent so happy, but when he passed by, Stiles could have told him his truck was being towed after having it vandalized by gang members and that repairs would cost a couple thousand dollars, and he wouldn't even bat an eye. Lydia forwarded him a pic Danny sent her of Aiden and Ethan. It was weird seeing the brothers happy without any malicious intent to be happy about, but it was there. 

He checked in on Heather and Harris too. Lydia was right, no one outside of their pack(and maybe those who were aware of what was really happening in Beacon) realized these people died. In Heather and Harris's cases, they've 'been in a coma'. Heather's was caused by overdosing at a party and Harris's by a car accident. At least that's what the files Melissa grabbed for him said. She wanted answers but he merely shrugged and said he was trying to make sense of it himself. 

At the moment, only Lydia knew _he_ was the one behind it. And even she didn't have specifics, and he wasn't feeling like sharing. 

_**From Lydia:** Derek's arriving in the morning._

_**From Stiles:** And Cora?_

_**From Lydia:** Later into the night. _

He was about to text something else when his phone began to ring with an unknown number. As hesitant as he was about answering it, he didn't want to not answer. There were so many new players on the board, brought back because of him, that it'd be reckless not to answer. 

"Hello?"

_"Ah, Stiles. I'm not interrupting you, am I?"_

"Great Uncle Ford?"

" _Yes, it's me. Are you busy?"_

Stiles sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep out of his eye, "No, no. What's up?"

 _"Listen...I know you and Dipper decided you wanted to live your own lives rather than continue on my work."_ Ford began and a small knot of guilt grew a smidge bigger in Stiles. 

"Great Uncle Ford, I-"

_"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. I understand that what's a passion for me, may not be for you. And Dipper was always a bit more excited about it than you."_

"It's not that I don't find it fascinating. It's just that...I know how dangerous it can be. Dipper...he just sees an _Indiana Jones_ movie. He didn't fully grasp how dangerous the supernatural is until the end with Bill and the Weirdmageddon."

Ford sighed deeply, _"I know. Which is why I'm sorry to bother you with this."_

"With what?" Stiles asked, immediately on alert.

_"Dipper is too young. You are too, but I need help. There's not many I trust-"_

"You can trust Grunkle Stan." Stiles stated.

_"I know. He's coming too. But we still need your help."_

"What? What's going on?" Stiles demanded a bit more urgently.

 _"I'd rather not say over the phone. Can you come at once?"_ Ford asked. 

"...I'll be there by noon."

* * *

 

"What are you doing here?" Lydia asked as she opened the door a bit more to let Derek in. 

He stepped in, hands in his jacket, looking uncertain and confused. Though most expect him to be over joyed and relieved, Lydia wasn't most people. It was normal for him to be confused. It was clear to all of them that Derek never really got to process what had happened to him and his family. Her conversation with Stiles popped into her mind. When the Sheriff and Stiles lost Mrs. Stilinski, it was hard but in time, they learned to move on. To accept she was gone and remember her fondly.  Derek was burdened with too much guilt and responsibility and dread and grief. All too much for one person to bear, human or otherwise. 

"Scott doesn't know where Stiles is. And he's not home..." Derek replied. 

'Oh.' 

Stiles had texted her some time ago. His explanation wasn't satisfying, nor did it explain anything, but it was clear. He was away. And he was unsure of when he'd return. 

"I know it was him." When Lydia just stared blankly at him, he clarified. "He was the one who brought them back. Do you...do you know _how_?" 

Lydia sighed and shook her head, "No. He hasn't said."

"So it _was_ him?" Though it was phrased like a question it was said as a statement. 

"Let's be honest...in the pack, the only ones with enough knowledge to pull this off is either me or him. And more so him." She smiled but scoffed a bit, "He' the only one mad enough to try the impossible." 

"Where is he? Is he hurt? Tired? Was it like a spell that's drained him?" Derek kept ranting on possibilities he's obviously been thinking. And she can't blame him. As a supernatural creature who knew that the impossible was actually possible, how many times has Derek looked into this? How many spells and rituals did he look up? How may shaman, witches, deal makers, and other sources did he visit?

"I don't know what he did." She admitted. "He was a bit banged up but he never mentioned how it came to be. And well...he's not here."

"Okay, where is he? Scott hasn't seen him, and he's not at the hospital or the station-"

"No, Derek." Lydia shook her head. He stopped and looked at her imploringly. "He's not in _Beacon_."

" _What_? Why? Where is he?" He demanded. 

"I don't know. Some sort of family emergency."

"Do you know what happened? When he'll be back?" Derek prompted.

"That's just it...Stiles doesn't know either." 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Stiles yawned and stretched as he fueled up his Jeep. He just made it into town and luckily only had one slight malfunction with the Jeep. Maybe he can have Soos look at it while he's there. More than likely they'll be using El Diablo for whatever they were doing. He adjusted the nuzzle so it'd keep fueling while he went inside and got himself something to eat. He didn't know if there would be anything at the Shack and he was kind of hungry. Sure the Shack had mostly been in stock while he and the twins visited, but now? And after Weirdmageddon? Yeah, it was better to get a snack now. 

As he waited in line to pay, he quickly turned around with a weird feeling of being watched. But when he turned, there was nothing out of the ordinary. 

'Huh...weird.' Stiles thought with a shrug. Maybe it's just being back this town. Even if Gravity Falls wasn't as deadly as Beacon Hills, it still dealt with supernatural stuff, and the survival instincts he's developed are just kind of waiting for something to happen. Stiles shook his head from his thoughts, "Oh my god, I've become paranoid..." he muttered to himself. 

"Hey, Cookie Cat ice cream!"  
_"Mabel! SH!_ "  
"Oops! _Sorry_." 

Okay...he heard _that_.

Leaving his things at the counter, he rounded the isle before spotting them. They were crouched down and trying to peek over the side, probably looking for him. 

"Can you see him?" Mabel whispered. And he meant actually whisper, not that fake-actually-seriously-loud-whispering he and Scott used to kinda do in high school. 

"No, there's Cheetos in the way..." Dipper mumbled.

"You could always try looking behind you." Stiles said aloud.

"AHH!" The twins screamed in unison as they turned around. 

"What are you two doing here?" Stiles demanded.

Dipper chuckled nervously before reaching for the first item he could reach. "Um...shopping?"

"Wow, I didn't realize you lacked in dental hygiene so much you needed dentures, dude." Stiles sarcastically replied as he looked at the dental cream. 

Dipper saw it too and grimaced as he placed it back.

Mabel scoffed and waved it off, "What? You think we'd drop everything and come back when we knew there was trouble? Psh...come on dawg, this is the real world. Not one of those comedy movies where the kid proves to be way smarter than the adults..."

Stiles stared/glared at them with the best 'parental' stare he could muster before they sighed in submission. 

Dipper and Mabel shared a glance before Dipper scratched the back of his head and began to explain. "Great Uncle Ford butt dialed me and didn't realize he did. While he did so he was talking to Grunkle Stan about this important, but very dangerous mission they'd have to go on. Apparently Weirdmageddon set some weird supernatural stuff into motion. Great Uncle Ford hated that he had to call you back in but it was needed."

"And since most of our family was in danger and we've been facing danger together all summer, we thought we'd come and complete the dream team!" Mabel added with a cheerful smile.

Stiles sighed and rubbed his face. "Grunkle Stan doesn't know you're coming, does he?"

The twins shook their heads, no.

"Do your parents know where you are?" Stiles asked.

"We left a note." Dipper replied happily.

"I didn't think Dipper would want to come back cos of some weird, hero, nerd righteousness, so I was kinda prepared to kidnap him." Mabel revealed.

"She was gonna used a pillow as a hostage head bag. Kinda loses it's effect since it was a tide-eyed pillow case though." Dipper added. 

Stiles groaned as he ran a hand over his face.

"How...how did you get _here_? How did you know I'd stop _here_?"

"We took the bus!" Mabel exclaimed. 

"It's really the only way to get here...well, for us, since we don't have a car. But we knew you did. So after Mabel and I took the bus here, after bribing our teenage neighbor for a ride to the bus station, I calculated the distance between Beacon and Gravity falls and how much gas your Jeep could use. Given the distance from the last town that would have a gas station, it was a high chance you'd stop to refuel here." Dipper explained, proud with his deductions. 

Stiles had to admit, he _was_ impressed. 

"Look, I'm not gonna lie, this is all impressive. But...we're gonna send you guys home."

"What?!" Dipper cried out.

"Boo!" Mabel exclaimed. 

Stiles pinched his nose, "I know we've been through a lot this summer, but we have all been at risk too much."

"And we're at risk again. We have to help!" Dipper insisted.

"Yeah, that's what family's for!" Mabel added.

"Family also protects each other, especially the young. That's why Great Uncle Ford called me instead of worrying you guys."  Stiles tried to explain. 

"Well, too bad! We're here, we know weirdness, and we're Pines!" Mabel cheered. 

She and Dipper shared a look before they started chanting, "Pines! Pines! Pines! Pines! Pines!"

Stiles sighed. "Fine...we'll see what Grunkle Stan and Great Uncle Ford have to say, alright? You two want anything?" 

"We're good. Waddles wants some potato chips though." Mabel said. 

Stiles froze on his way to the counter.

"You brought Waddles with you?"

"Uh..duh! He's as much a Pines as the rest of us." Mabel said.

"Plus, there's a chance if we leave him he'll eat everything in our room." Dipper added.

"There's that." Mabel agreed. 

Stiles looked between the two of them, then back to his Jeep. He pointed at Dipper, "You get shot-gun."

"Yes!" Dipper double fist pumped the air.

"What? Why!?" Mabel complained.

"Because if that pig is riding in Roscoe, you're gonna make sure he doesn't use him as a toilet or a snack. Understand?" Stiles warned her. He loved his cousin, but he also loved his Jeep. And his poor Roscoe has already seen enough damage because of wolves and foxes and coyotes...he didn't need to add pigs to that list.

"Waddles loves you, Stiles! He's got mad respect for his brotha from anotha motha! You ain't got anything to worry about." Mabel promised. 

* * *

"Okay so...Kate Argent, who is now a Were-Jaguar on the run killed almost all of the Hales by burning down the house. Peter Hale survived but was badly injured, went insane, and killed his niece who became Alpha after her mother died and he was the one who bit Scott?" Parrish began to summarize everything they've been dealing with the last couple of days.

The Sheriff nodded as he stirred his coffee and tried to fight back a migraine.

"Before Stiles and his friends took it upon themselves to try and save this town, that responsibility fell on the Hales?"

"From what I understand, yes." The Sheriff answered.

"And now somehow, nearly a decade give or take later...they're resurrected. But somehow, no one outside of those in the know about the supernatural remembers the fire."

"No, people remember the fire. It was a huge scandal. Apparently Kate Argent is still getting the blame for arson. What seemed to change is that people think that the Hales managed to escape tragedy." The Sheriff corrected.

It took a bit to get an account from different people, but it was done. The Sheriff asked people from the station, people from the hospital, the insurance company, and even some of his neighbors. All under the pretense that some bureaucratic paper mix up needed a re-account of what had happened and he was taking down notes. Being the well trusted sheriff, no one really thought it odd of him asking.  

 Parrish let out a low whistle. "Wow...and what about the Hales? What do they remember?"

As much as Parrish had wanted to be there with the Sheriff as he asked and investigated, the Sheriff kept him back. Being a Hell-Hound, he wasn't sure how well welcomed he'd be in a pack of werewolves who have been out of the loop for some time. 

"They remember getting trapped. They remembered they should have been scared, but it seems whatever the hell happened has... _blocked_ the worst of it." The Sheriff explained. Or did his best to.

"How do you mean?" Parrish pressed.

The Sheriff took a moment to collect his thoughts before explaining. "I was there, Parrish. When the call came in about the Hales. It took just about all the department because no matter how much the firemen did...it wasn't enough. I saw the bodies...all burned and unrecognizable. Some big and strong...some little and frail. There had been children in there...wolf _and_ human. And even if they weren't human...that sort of rage _and_ anger done on _anyone_ , is monstrous.

"And you've seen Peter when he's talked about his injuries. About his hatred for the Argents. You know how horrible it can be." The Sheriff said. 

Parrish nodded after gulping.

"But..." The Sheriff leaned back into his chair and let out a sigh, "They can't seem to remember anything from that night. It's like...a nightmare. You know there should be fear and dread and panic. But when you wake up...you can't remember any specific details. Which, given what happened, is a blessing in disguise."

Parrish nodded in agreement.

They were quiet for a while, contemplating their own thoughts on the matter. Wondering how things were going to change from then on. What their roles will be now that the previous players are back in the game.

The Sheriff's phone beeped and he took it out. He read the text and sighed deeply.

"What is it?"

"Stiles."

"Is he okay?" Parrish asked, worried. God knows what else was gonna happen. Whenever something really good happened, something really bad was around the corner.

"Huh? Um...yeah. I mean I think. My uncles up in Oregon called him, asking for his help." The Sheriff replied.

"The ones he spent the summer with?" Parrish inquired.

The Sheriff nodded. "The very same..."

"Isn't it...good, though? Stiles being out of Beacon for a while? Less danger that way."

The Sheriff scoffed, "This is my son we're talking about, Parrish. Like the town he was born in, he himself seems to be a Beacon for the supernatural."

"And that's why I'm worried."

Both the Sheriff and Parrish sat up on alert when they heard the voice. At the threshold stood none other than Derek Hale. 

"Derek...shouldn't you be home?" The Sheriff asked as he stood up and walked around his desk and leaned on it. 

Derek entered the office and closed the door behind him. "I have been. And it's...it's weird."

"Good weird, right?" Parrish said with a gentle smile as he too stood like the other two. 

"Yeah, I guess but...I...I'm not good with emotions. And my family has questions. I offered to get them." Derek replied.

"And you think Stiles has them?" The Sheriff inquired.

Derek frowned, "You don't know?"

"Know what?" The Sheriff prompted but he could already guess what. And it only made him want to go after his son immediately. 

"...he's the one who brought them back."

* * *

 

" **Hey there cutie!** " 

"Hi, Grenda." Stiles greeted. 

He was outside, stretching his legs while the twins were inside getting lectured by Ford and Stan tried to calm their parents down. 

"We did not think we'd see you so soon, Stiles." Candy added as she appeared next to Grenda. 

" **Course he couldn't stay away! We're irresistible!** "

"Don't you have a boyfriend, Grenda?" Stiles asked with a sly grin.

" **Yes, but that doesn't mean I'm blind!** " Grenda said as she winked 'flirtatiously' at Stiles.

All summer since Mabel befriended Candy an Grenda, they've had a crush on Stiles similar to the crush Dipper had on Wendy. Similar but not the same since the girl's boy craziness came and went whenever a cute boy arrived. 

He was flattered and it was actually something he and Wendy bonded over. 

"Ladies, ladies...I know my cousin can totally be the star of his own boy band if he wanted to-"

"Which I don't."

"You're part of _Love Patrol Alpha_ , hush." She turned back to her friends after bursting out of the front door, "We have some serious bizz to attend to!"

" _ **MABEL**_!"  
"Mabel!" 

The three grouped hug and Stiles had to smile at their friendship. Sure Mabel tried to hook him up with each of them during the summer on different weeks whenever Stiles did something that made Grenda and Candy swoon apparently. It had been fun and annoying but in the end, a good intention. 

"Sides, I thought we all agreed to stay friends." Stiles added. 

The response he got? 

Well, he was tackled by three over energetic girls. 

" ** _FRIENDSHIP_**!" All of them yelled out like a battle-cry. 

* * *

"So, we all come back...from the _dead_. And you're leaving?" Laura crossed her arms as she leaned against the door frame of Derek's room. She was watching as he packed. 

Derek stopped as he turned to look at her. His eyes were full of emotion whenever he stared at any of them. He still couldn't really believe it was all real and not just some part of a dream. 

"Laura..." Derek began, but she cut him off.

"Normally I would investigate the hell out of stuff like this but damn it, Derek....we should leave well enough alone!"

"I can't do that. Not when..."

"Not when what?" Laura demanded.

"Not when the one who did this is in danger himself." Cora said as she entered his room and sat on the bed. When Derek gave her a questioning look, she shrugged. "What? You think you're the only one who can stalk people?"

Derek turned to Laura and saw her just stare. Unlike the others who had died in the fire, Laura had a few more years after. As far as she'd known, Cora had been dead. And since Derek, Laura, Cora, and Peter weren't in the fire...they've aged. Even if Laura had seen Derek in his adult form, he's grown so much since she's last seen him, and it's weird. 

Laura shook her head out of her thoughts. "So...who is this grand savior of ours?"

"When I find him and bring him back, I'll introduce you." Derek sassed as he smiled at his sister. He grabbed his bag and headed downstairs. Cora and Laura followed. 

"Derek, we could really use your help right about now." Laura stated.

"Cora will be here to do that. Any questions, you can rely on the Sheriff. Or Melissa McCall if you can't reach Scott. Have mom talk with Satomi. She's been involved and so has her pack. She can offer details. I'll be back, I promise...I just...I gotta do this. If Stiles did bring you all back and he's in trouble...I owe him. He's the one with the plan. He's the reason we're all alive. He's the reason we've kept the town safe. The rest of us are just the muscle. And right now...he's missing half of what makes him a success. So I gotta go." Derek stopped in front of her and kissed her forehead. "I thought I lost all of you...getting you all back, it's like a dream. And I...I _can't_ explain it, but I _need_ Stiles to confirm it for me. If he tells me it's real...then I know it is." 

"Derek..."

 "I'll be back soon, I promise." 

* * *

 

"Where are the kids?" Ford asked.

"I had Wendy ask them to go hang out. They're down by the graveyard doing something." Stiles replied as he joined his Great Uncles at the table. "So...what exactly is going on? Nothing Bill-like, right?"

Ford shook his head, "No. Not Bill. But maybe as bad...or it can get that bad."

"Apparently the Weirdmageddon crap acted like some sort of beacon for more monstrous things." Stan stated. 

Stiles tensed at the wording. It sounded too familiar and he was having a sense of deja vu. 

"In the forest there is a creature who has...anchored itself to the area. It's ominous presence is causing a lot of the supernatural creatures who call the forest home, to leave said homes and come more into town." Ford explained. 

 "What do we do?" Stiles asked.

"I've been working on solutions but without any more information, I can't be sure of how to deal with it properly." Ford replied. 

"Which leads us to one of the of worst plans ever concocted in this house. Tell em, Sixer." Stan slapped Ford before taking a sip of his Dr. Pib.

"From what the gnomes and the multi-bear, this thing feeds off malice, misery, fear, and other ill emotions." Ford began. 

Stiles looked between his Great Uncles and began to piece together where this was going. Grunkle Stan's guilt about pushing Ford through the portal, the things he had to deal with while he was on his own after being kicked out, the things while he and the Twins were under his care that didn't go right. Then Great Uncle Ford who spent three decades in a nightmare realm facing god knows what sort of demons. 

"You want to lure it by being bait?"

The brothers looked at each other and nodded. 

"Where do I fit in?" Stiles asked.

"Your old man ever teach you how to shoot a gun?" Stan asked.

At first Stiles began to laugh, but when he realized Stan was serious, he froze. 

"I'm back-up?"

"I know it's dangerous but...we need to contain this." Ford begrudgingly said. 

"You don't have to do it, kid." Stan said immediately after. 

"I know...but I will. But we go now so the kids won't get involved. They mean well, but-"

"Agreed. It's too dangerous. For either of you too, but more for them." Ford agreed.

"They also don't need any nightmares. Again, you don't either, Stiles, but we're grateful you're doing this." Stan said. 

* * *

 

"Mabel, I think we've been ditched." Dipper said as they rendezvous back in the living room.

Waddles came next to her and nodded. " _Oink_."

"I know, Waddles... why would they bring us all the way back, only to ditch us!" Mabel cried out.

"Um...Mabel? We ran away from home and stalked Stiles to get here." Dipper corrected her.

She scoffed and waved it off, "Pe-shaw... _details_."

"Are important since they'd tell us what they were doing and where they could be. Mabel, Grunkle Ford found something dangerous and we know how dangerous, dangerous can be in this town! Great Uncle Ford, Grunkle Stan, and Stiles can be in serious danger and we don't know where they are!" 

**_*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*_ **

"I'll get it!" Mabel ran to the door and opened it. When she did, her eyes widened and her heart began to beat faster. "Hi, I'm Mabel! I'm thirteen, I love rainbows, wanna get married!?"

"Mabel!" Dipper cried out as he joined his sister at the door. 

"Right, sorry, family emergency. But hey! If we get married, you'd be part of the family!"

"You don't even know the guy's name." Dipper deadpanned. He looked at the stranger and raised an eyebrow, "Who are you exactly?" Then he looked at his sister, "And no, Mabel, he's not your soul mate." 

"My name's Derek Hale. I'm looking for Stiles. I know he's here. His Jeep's outside."

Dipper and Mabel shared a look and seemed to be communicating silently. Well, more like arguing. Finally, Dipper seemed to have won, seeing as Mabel deflated.

"How do we know you know him? How do we know you're a good guy?" Dipper asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Obviously he's a bad boy, Dipper. Just look at those muscles and that leather jacket~" Mabel sighed happily. 

Derek took a step back, not really too comfortable around children...or children who find him attractive and suspicious. 

Before Dipper could answer, his phone rang. He saw it was Ford and picked up, "Great Uncle Ford?"

But there was no reply, even if there was noise and voices coming from the other end. 

"Great Uncle Ford?" Dipper tried again, louder. 

 _"WHOA!"_  
_"STANDLEY!"_  
_"STILES, SHOOT IT!"_

"Dipper! I think Grunkle Ford butt dialed you again!" Mabel exclaimed.

"And it sounds like they're in danger. We gotta help!" Dipper cried out, worried.

"How? We don't know where they are!" Mabel yelled. 

"No, but..." Dipper shut off the call and did some press some buttons on the phone and then yelled in victory, "Yes! Great Uncle Ford's phone has GPS!"

"We're lucky he's not good with technology with how paranoid he is." Mabel commented and Dipper nodded. 

"Come on, we gotta go." Dipper said as he and Mabel were about to leave but their path was blocked by... "Can we help you?"

"Give me the phone, I'll go get them." Derek said as he tried to reach for it. 

Dipper stepped back and held the phone to his chest. "No way, man. We don't know you. And this is _our_ family!"

"That's in trouble and needs help. I can help." Derek argued. 

"No, no way! We're not gonna trust some biker dude who shows up out of nowhere." Dipper scoffed. 

Mabel placed her hand on his shoulder, "Dipper...Stiles was using a _gun_. Not a crossbow or one of Grunkle Ford's journals. But a _gun!_ We gotta help..."

That terminology made Derek raise an eyebrow. It sounded a lot like Hunter Family talk. Was...was Stiles from a Hunter family like the Argents? 

Dipper looked uncertain before sighing and looking over at Derek. "We go with you."

"No way! Stiles will kill me if I bring a couple of kids along." Derek shook his head, no.

"We're not kids! We're thirteen, _teenagers_! We know the area, and we already know the location. You either take us with you and guard us, or we follow you anyway and if we get hurt you'll have to explain _that_ to Stiles!" Mabel threatened. 

Derek's eyes widened before they narrowed as he glared at them. "So...you _are_ related to Stiles." He sighed before begrudgingly agreeing. "Alright, get in the car!"

"Yay!" Mabel cheered.

Dipper looked at his phone, keeping it away from Derek's sight, and mumbled, "Hang on guys, we're coming." 


	3. Chapter 3

"So... _how_ exactly do you know our cousin again? You're like...a bajillion years old and look like a convict." Dipper said as he dodged under a tree branch. 

"Dipper!" Mabel exclaimed while elbowing him. 

"What? He does!" Dipper defended himself. 

"If he says he's Stiles's friend then he's Stiles's friend. Sides, who would come into the woods with two kids in search of weird danger?" 

"A creep, Mabel. A total creep would. Which is the vibe I am getting. I've been right before, why do you have to ignore me just because he's pretty?" Dipper asked his sister.

"So you admit he's pretty?" Mabel asked with a smirk.

"In the Hollywood Ryan Reynolds sorta way, I guess?" Dipper answered with a shrug. 

They drove in the Camero until the trees made it impossible to do so. Dipper had hidden the phone inside his vest pocket so Derek couldn't just grab it. They walked on foot in silence for a while before Dipper began to interrogate Derek. When the twins began to argue, Derek was torn from being embarrassed and annoyed. 

"I told you, I'm his friend. I'm from Beacon." Was Derek's reply. 

"If you're his friend, how come we haven't heard of you? Or seen you call Stiles during the whole summer he was with us? Stiles has talked and video-chatted with Scott, Lydia, Malia, Deputy Parrish," Dipper paused as he counted the people in each finger.

"Liam called cos he had science-y questions. And Kira had book reading-y questions." Mabel added.

"Right. There were also other adults too. Like a doctor Deaton, a Braeden, Melissa. But not once did he ever mention you. If you were really his friend he would have mentioned you." Dipper accused.

Derek sighed, "Look...I was traveling, okay? Some bad stuff happened to me in Beacon and I needed a break."

"What sort of bad stuff?" Dipper demanded.

Derek wasn't sure just how much these kids actually knew about Stiles's life, and though Derek may not be the most social person ever, even he knew he shouldn't scare children. His wolfing out at trick-o-treaters on Halloween didn't count, he reminded himself. 

"I ran into some really bad people in a wrong neighborhood. I was hurt really badly. It made miss my family...but the only living family I had was my sister who was in South America. So I went to visit her for a while. Since then I did a bit of soul searching and kept on traveling. I haven't been to Beacon in a while, so may not be on Stiles's top ten list of friends, but I am his friend." Derek explained. 

Dipper was about to open his mouth to say something when something crashes into him. And then more things. 

"What the hell!?"

"Hey mack, there's a lady child present! Watch the language! And move it, we're scampering here!"

Just before he could run off, Dipper grabbed the gnome and a triumphant, "Gotcha!" 

"Hey! Lemme go!"

"First I got a question for you, Josh. Have you seen our cousin?" Dipper asked.

"It's Jeff! We've been over this, you've known me for most of the summer! I was engaged to your sister!"

"You tricked me into thinking you were a hot, misunderstood, vegetarian vampire!" Mabel cried with indignation.

"We were selling a bit, but we were definitely not selling _that_ , tuts." Jeff scoffed as he crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. Have you seen my cousin?" Dipper repeated the question.

"You mean the hot one? Not since he left." Jeff replied with a shrug.

"Wait, hot one?" Dipper asked, confused.

"Well she's the cute one, you're the loser one, and the older one's the hot one. The mermaids were all crazy about him. Sprites too. Can I go now?"

"Almost. Why are you scampering?" Dipper asked.

"Something big and scary has been terrorizing the forest. Ain't safe no more. If you know what's good for you, ignore it and go solve this mystery like all the other ones. I got valuable stuff at home I wanna go back to. But until then, lemme go!" Jeff demanded before he swung himself and bit Dipper's wrist. Dipper cried out in pain and let Jeff go and he scampered off behind the rest of the gnomes. Before he was out of sight, he yelled back, "Try asking Celest!"

Both Dipper and Mabel groaned. 

Derek finally snapped out of his shocked stupor and asked, "Wh-what just happened? What was that? Who the hel- _heck_ , is Celest?"

"Celestabellebethabelle..." Mabel growled out as she balled her hand into a fist and shook it menacingly. 

Dipper looked at Derek with an unimpressed and smug expression as he deadpanned, "Unicorn, dude. Look...this town is weird. The deeper we go into these woods the weirder it's gonna get. As much as I don't trust you, and it's a lot by the way, we could use the muscle. So don't faint okay? You look heavy and if you did, we'd leave you."

"I wouldn't!" Mabel said as she latched on to Derek's arm. 

Dipper pulled her away and then looked into her eyes and said very seriously, "Yes, we would. Because we're a team and _our_ mission is to save Stan, Ford, and Stiles."

Mabel sighed before looking at Derek apologetically. "He's right."

"I'm not going to faint!" Derek stressed. "I'm just...a bit shocked. Has Stiles known this place was supernaturally weird?"

"Yeah. What did you think he was doing all summer?" Dipper asked.

"Those were...gnomes?"

The twins nodded. 

"Yeah, we've met, fought, befriended, angered, avenged, and a bunch of other stuff with the inhabitants of this forest...and rest of Gravity Falls!" Mabel exclaimed. 

"And...unicorns? They're real?" Derek asked with disbelief.

The twins nodded, though they didn't seem as happy as children who knew unicorns to be real should be. Mabel then said, "They're _soooooo_ annoying!" 

"And stuck up." Dipper added. "Frustrating to work with."

"I beat  some up with my girl friends!" Mabel said proudly. 

"And...will that hinder us asking them if they've seen Stiles?" Derek asked, still not sure if he believed this.

"Nah...if they don't want to talk then we do what Grunkle Stan taught us. USE BRUTE FORCE AND MENACING THREATS!" Mabel screamed with diabolical mirth.

* * *

 

Stan was knocked unconscious and Ford was across the field. Stiles himself had to do a couple of tricks he's sure he'll never be able to do again and was extremely thankful to pull off the first time around. They allowed him to reach Stan and guard him from the thing they were fighting. 

Stiles didn't even get a glimpse of it to know what it could be. 

They arrived deep into the heart of the forest where the weather was impossibly bad...and only surrounding a particular area. The clouds overhead where stormy grey and the winds were strong. Stiles wasn't sure if it was his imagination or if there were actually voices in it. 

Knife like...personified burst of energy kept being through at them. And there was this ominous feeling in the air. Something he hasn't felt since his possession of the Nogitsune. It rattled him and made him lose focus as few times, but thankfully his developed reflexes and instincts kicked and and made him dodge just in the nick of time. 

But not all of the time. He was trying to find Ford through the winds, clouds, fog, and dark aura that was manifesting as black mist, when one of the blade like energy blast struck him on his left side. He put pressure on the wound but he felt the blood seep through his fingers. Spots were beginning to form in his sight and he was seeing double.

He heard the _swoosh_ of another attack heading towards him but he couldn't tell from where it was coming from. He closed his eyes and began to submit to his fate when gravity did something weird and he was suddenly on his side. 

"Can't you go _anywhere_ without getting into trouble?"

" _Derek_!?" Stiles squawked out. 

"You're bleeding." Derek said looking at the wound. Then he grabbed Stiles's wrist and took away some of the pain. 

Stiles took his wrist away, "'m fine...Grunkle Stan..."

Derek looked over to see the older man unconscious behind a boulder. 

"Okay, you lay low and put pressure on that wound, okay? I'll get him out." Derek told him. Stiles nodded and watched through squinted eyes as best as he could as Derek took Stan out of the danger zone. Once they were out of sight he closed his eyes, and his hold weakened. He wasn't sure how much time passed but Derek was there again, "I told you to keep pressure on the wound."

"S'rry..." Stiles muttered. 

He blinked one moment and he was in Derek's arms, sky dark and gloomy. Then he blinked again and he thought he heard Dipper's voice and he saw tree branches. Blinking again he heard Waddles oinking and Robbie's screams and saw old moldy and unknown stains on the ceiling. 

* * *

 

Stiles groaned as he woke up. Memories of his last conscious hours had him bolting up in bed. 

"Whoa! Easy there dude."

Stiles looked over and saw Wendy. 

"Wendy?"

"How's your side?" She asked. 

Stiles touched his side and winced.

"It's time to change your bandages."

Looking over to the voice and his eyes widened a bit, "So it wasn't my imagination..."

Derek shrugged as he took a seat on the chair next to the bed and placed his supplies on the nightstand. "You get yourself in danger, of course I'm gonna come to save your ass."

"Weren't you in like...Costa Rica or something?" Stiles asked as he sat up and rested against the headboard and lifted his shirt. 

"Was...but then someone decided I needed a family reunion...." He said as he unrolled the bandages and then gave Stiles a pointed look.

Stiles sighed before asking, "Are Stan and Ford alright?"

"Stan was kinda beat up and has a nasty bump on his noggin'. Ford's looking after him with Dipper and Mabel helping. They've been going back and forth between you two." Wendy supplied.

Stiles nodded gratefully at her. "Can you give us a moment? And make sure no one comes in?"

Wendy smiled gently at him and nodded. "You got it dude. Need anything just shout."

Once Wendy was gone, Stiles looked over at Derek. "So...wait-why are you _here_? Why aren't you with them?"

"You...you bring them _all_ back...and then _disappear_? I think _that's_ a better story. Or how about you go to another town for a whole summer that's just as weird as Beacon and you don't tell us about it?"

"Tell _you_?" Stiles demanded, scoffing a bit at the end. "When was I supposed to tell you? _You_ disappear without saying goodbye, and we can only _assume_ you went off to see Cora but we didn't really _know_! The only reason it was confirmed was because you passed it off to Braeden as a possibility!"

"I needed time to adjust to my new status, _excuse me_! But what the hell have _you_ been up to? When Peter brought himself back it was a mess, it took a shit ton of manipulation and dark magic, god knows what else! You brought back a whole _pack_! And extras!"

"I did it for _you_!" Stiles cried and there was a shocked expression between the both of them before Stiles continued. "I did it for _Beacon_. I did it because you have lost _so_ much and it wasn't _fair!_  And your family made up the rightful guardians of Beacon Hills. _You_ needed them. _We_ needed them...it just _worked_ out."

There was a silence which was followed by Derek simply removing the old bandage, cleaning the wound, and replacing it.  

"Did you...could you...could you have brought back your mother?" Derek asked gently, avoiding Stiles's eyes.

"Yeah...I also could have wished Kate never got to you in the first place, or ever set the fire. Erase _everything_ that was bad from ever happening..." Derek looked up, having to look at Stiles then. Stiles's eyes were shining bright with emotion as he gave a watery smile. "I'm sorry if you still remember all of it. But like I told Lydia...I made peace with my mother's passing. At first I couldn't imagine a world without her, but now...as impossible as it seems I can't imagine a world were...werewolves aren't real. Where I'm not part of a pack with all of us who make it up." Then he motioned to his wound and the room, "Not like I would have escaped weirdness. One way or another...werewolf, banshee, Gravity Falls...I would have a weird life."

"Wish?" Was what Derek decided to focus on. He heard all of it, of course but... "Stiles, what did you _do_ exactly? Please tell me you didn't do anything stupid like....sell your soul or something like that!" Derek begged. 

Stiles shook his head, "No, nothing like that."

"Then what?"

"It's called Globnar." Stiles said before he began to explain.

* * *

 

"Are we really gonna be trusting that guy in there alone with Stiles?" Dipper demanded as they all huddled around Stan's bed. 

Stan was awake letting Mabel embroider his cast. 

"The guy saved my life. And don't count Stiles out, he can take care of himself." Stan said.

"He's hurt!" Dipper exclaimed. 

"Come on, dude. Stiles was hurt in Weirdmageddon and so were the rest of us. Plus, your cousin's kinda righteously awesome." Wendy added.

"Why are none of you worried that a stranger showed up out of nowhere and is getting all cozy with Stiles?!"

"Bro, what's this really about? I mean, I get the initial worry, but this is kinda like...paranoid crazy." Mabel asked. 

"Yeah, I mean you saw how he was like when he brought Stiles in. Wouldn't leave his side. Wouldn't let anyone but Ford touch him since out of all of use Sixer's the closest thing we got to a medical doctor." Stan said. 

Dipper sighed deeply as he slumped into a chair. "I just...I know, okay? I just...Stiles and I were close, ya know? I thought we shared everything. I thought I knew every person who meant something to him and well... _I'm_ Stiles's life saving bud! _I'm_ the one who has his back! I love Mabel, you all know I do, but Stiles was the closest thing I've got to a brother and I just...I don't want him to forget about me or throw me to the side."

"Oh Dipper...Stiles will never do that! He loves you! He loves all of us! We're great~" Mabel said cheerfully. 

"She's right, dude. And you'll always have the special bond with Stiles. No one is gonna take that away. And _trust me_ , if I'm reading things right, you're not gonna have to worry about Derek taking your place as Stiles's brother." Wendy said with a smirk. 

"What do you mean?" Dipper asked, confused.

Wendy looked at Stan who shook his head, "That's for Stiles to tell him. If it happens."

"What are you guys talking about?" Mabel asked.

"Nothing, pumpkin. Now, how about some pancakes?"

"Yay! Pancakes, pancakes, pancakes!" Mabel began to chant. Stan and Wendy followed soon after, and then Dipper joined in too.

* * *

 

"Sounds like your family is going for pancakes." Derek said once he heard the chanting. 

"Yeah...sounds like them." 

Stiles explained what Globnar was and how it came to be. Derek was slightly horrified that Matt had survived after the whole damn Kanima incident. As much as Derek wanted to know more, he didn't want to exhaust Stiles. Though he had asked about the creatures he ran into in the woods. The small explanations he got were...amusing, if not slightly horrifying. 

"Have the twins figured out what you are?" Stiles asked.

"No," Derek shook his head, "I didn't know if they knew about Beacon. Plus it is still kinda my secret."

"Too true. There aren't any werewolves in this area and well...let's keep it like that for now, okay?"

"You kicking me out?" Derek asked, but it was light. Teasing almost. 

Stiles smiled, "Like you'd leave."

"Damn right I won't."

"You'll have to...eventually." Stiles said, becoming very serious. "Derek, your _family_ is back! You should go back and enjoy this second chance."

Derek grabbed Stiles's hands in his, "Come back with me. I promised Laura I'd introduce you...My whole family would love to meet you."

"I can't...not yet. My uncles need help." Stiles replied meekly.

"Then I'll stay to help. Then we go back together." Derek said as if it was that simple.

"Derek-"

"If you don't come back and confirm it...it won't seem _real_. I need you. To be there, I mean." Derek quickly added when he realized how the wording sounded. "Please..."

"I don't know how long I'll be here." Stiles told him.

"You're brilliant. Whatever this is...you'll figure it out, and soon."

Stiles smiled at him, "Thanks for saving me. _Us_."

"It's what we do, right? Save each other...and our families."

"Yeah..."

_*knock knock knock*_

"Yes?" Stiles asked.

"It's me." Ford said as he poked his head inside. "I was wondering if you're feeling up for a talk?"

"Can Derek stay?" Stiles asked after sharing a brief glance with Derek. They both knew Derek would remain near and therefore hear anything being said anyway.

"This is...rather _sensitive_. Regarding the summer's events." Ford stated. 

Before Stiles could try to argue anything, Derek turned to the older man and flashed his eyes blue. "Then I'd like to stay. I'm very curious as to what exactly happened this summer."

Ford stormed into the room as he pulled out his gun and pointed it at Derek's head.

Stiles jumped out of bed, ignoring the pain that went through him as he tore away some of the stitching, and stood in front of Derek. "Great Uncle Ford, wait!"

Derek pressed his front to Stiles's back as he held his arms out on either side of Stiles and extended his claws, and shifting into his partial Beta form.

" _Derek_!" Stiles hissed.

Shifting back, Derek led Stiles back to bed before turning to Stiles's great uncle. "I'm a werewolf. A _born_ werewolf. And Beacon Hills is as... _weird_ , as Gravity Falls. Why don't we swap stories?"

Ford was flabbergasted at first but then he got his wits about him. Looking at Stiles for an okay, he got it with a nod, and then Ford nodded too. "Alright. _Quid pro quo_ as they say... _do_ people still say that?" He asked genuinely curious, breaking his _serious_ persona for a moment. 

Derek shared a small grin with Stiles, "I can totally see where it comes from."


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In a similar way that Dipper idolized Ford, is the way he idolized Stiles, but there was more to an older brother feel. Stiles was Dipper's 'cool older brother' that he doesn't want to share. And sort like how Mabel thought she was going to lose Dipper to Ford for his apprenticeship, Dipper feels he'll lose Stiles in...whatever the heck Derek's offering.

"So you were _born_ a werewolf? _Fascinating_!" Ford exclaimed as he jotted things down in a new journal. 

Stiles rolled his eyes a bit, "Great Uncle Ford, can you uh...can we keep the fascinated scientist part _out_ of this conversation, please?"

Ford looked up from his writing and looked between his nephew and their guest. Remembering he may acting socially awkward, he set down his pen and journal, blushed then apologized. "Sorry. I just never met a werewolf on this side."

"It's alright. So long as it doesn't get too personal, I don't mind questions. From what I seen this family isn't as... _prejudice_ as others. Or at all. You guys don't really care what someone is so long as they're not dicks." Derek stated. He looked over at Stiles, "Something he's been very loud about." 

"Having super human abilities doesn't give you any authority over regular humans." Stiles shot back. 

"You two have known each other long?" Ford asked, sensing a form of familiarity between the two. They seemed comfortable with each other. Hell, Derek didn't seem all that the social kind when you first glance at him, but with Stiles he grins and banters. Not smile, per say, but he fits in nicely with the people who usually take up the Shack's residence. 

"A few years, but experiences had made it seem longer." Stiles replied. "You know of my best friend Scott?"

Ford nodded, "Your Mexican friend who works at the vet?"

"Yes him, well...he was bitten by a werewolf when we were sixteen. I was there to help him gain control and make sure he didn't kill anyone or expose himself...and our lives have been weird ever since." Stiles said. 

Looking at Derek, Ford asked. "How did you fit in? Were you the one who bit Scott?"

"No." Derek shook his head. "It's a very long and complicated story."

"And emotionally exhausting. Each piece has a back story that explains why it happened. So lets stick with the relevant stuff, okay? Scott's a werewolf, bitten, and became an Alpha on his own. Normally that power is inherited or stolen." Stiles explained. 

"How?" Ford asked, picking up his pen and journal again. Then he noticed it and placed it back down sheepishly. "Sorry."

"It's alright. If it helps my case any, write this all down." Derek added. He shared a look with Stiles before he began to explain. "Werewolves, like wolves of the wild are bound by the pack hierarchy. There's an Alpha, Betas, and Omegas. Omegas are lone wolves but they don't last very long by themselves. They become feral when away from and not being associated with a pack. And that makes their actions more noticeable. Normally hunters kill them the moment they're seen. Omegas are still possible in packs though. They're the opposite of an Alpha and sometimes they're the Alpha's mate. When they're not, then it depends what sort of pack it is that's speaks to their treatment."

"Omegas being, in this sense of speaking, lowest rank. Eating last if we're referencing an actual pack of wolves," Ford added in. 

Derek nodded. "Omega animals are subordinate to all others in the community, and are expected by others in the group to remain submissive to everyone. Omega animals may also be used as communal scapegoats or outlets for frustration, or given the lowest priority when distributing food. And like I said, it depends on the Alpha and the pack, so the treatment of omegas can vary from...light teasing and bossing around to..."

"Out right servitude." Stiles finished, thinking of the Beacon Twins Ethan and Aiden who used to be their pack's omegas before Deucalion convinced them to become Alphas.

"And you're...?"

"A Beta. For a while I was an Alpha but I lost my power." Derek answered.

Ford furrowed his brow. "How is Alpha power gained and lost?"

"Different ways. After my mother died, my sister was the Alpha Heir...so the second my mother officially stopped breathing, my sister gained Alpha status." Derek said solemnly.

"Like a noble title...oldest and next in line gets the power?" Ford inquired.

"A bit...less genderless. I've had brothers...some even older than my sister, but they were all Betas. She was the Alpha. Stronger, more dominant, natural leader." Derek supplied. He shared another look with Stiles, silently asking him if it was alright not to share his family's whole story...just yet. If they had to talk about Stiles's Globnar wish, then he'd explain it with more detail, but for now...he'd be selective with his information. "Another way is by stealing the power. If one werewolf kills an Alpha, they then become an Alpha...which is how I became one for a while. I killed the werewolf who stole my sister's powers and bit Scott."

"But you're not an Alpha anymore. How did you lose it?"

"Alpha's, by nature, are stronger. Werewolves also have the ability to take pain away." Derek grabbed Stiles's wrist and withdrew some of the pain, black veins running up his hand which had Ford's eyes widening in amazement. "Taking power is dangerous though. Too much and well...long story short, my little sister was in risk of dying due to being poisoned. I used my Alpha healing powers to take away her pain and she was so weak and close to death that...it took all of my Alpha powers to keep her alive."

"And Scott?" Ford questioning, getting the feeling that Derek didn't wish to discuss his family at length. Having his own family being what it was, and the past with them, Ford could understand and respect that. He also had a feeling there was a lot more Stiles and Derek weren't telling him. And considering they just started that was saying a lot. 

"He's what they call a True Alpha." Stiles answered. "He rose to the rank naturally because of his moral compass and inner strength. Alphas are the most powerful of the were-creatures, and a True Alpha is even more powerful than that."

"Wow...and you've been dealing with werewolves for the past couple of years?" Ford asked his nephew. 

Stiles shrugged. "Well...there's also a Banshee, a Were-Coyote, a Kitsune, and a Hell Hound, but _yeah_...werewolves are _kinda_ the center of all of Beacon's... _weirdness_."

Rather than being fascinated and intrigued like Stiles expecting him to be, Ford was genuinely seriously concerned. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Stiles asked, not as defensively as he might have been some time ago, but there was still an edge to his voice.

"Have you ever experienced any... _supernatural_ phenomenon away from Gravity Falls?" Ford asked, _very_ seriously. 

Derek raised an eyebrow at that before looking at Stiles and asking, "Have you experienced any supernatural phenomenon _in_ Gravity Falls?"

Stiles looked between the two, darting his eyes as his mind raced a million miles per minute as he thought of a possible way out of this. When he couldn't he sighed and surrendered, "Yes..."

Ford and Derek shared a look before their own looked onto Stiles. 

"Yes to whom, Stiles?" Ford asked.

"To both, okay!" He looked to Derek and said, "I was possessed again during the summer."

" _Again_!?" Ford cried out.

" _What_?!" Derek exclaimed, more alert now. 

Stiles sighed as he turned to his Great Uncle, "It's called the Nogitsune. A demonic fox spirit." Then he turned to Derek, "His name was Bill."

* * *

 

The Pines family plus Wendy were at Greasy's Diner eating pancakes, having a great time saying hello to everyone they knew before. Once their order came in, they quieted down and began to munch down.

Stan was half way through his meal when he pushed away his plate and sighed. 

"What's wrong, Grunkle Stan?" Mabel asked.

"You kids realize you gotta head home, right?" Stan asked.

" _What_!? But you and Ford need our help!" Dipper cried.

Mabel nodded, "Yeah!"

"Which is why we called Stiles. And now he's got someone to also help. You two are heading home. Again." Stan ordered. 

" _Boo_!" Mabel and Dipper exclaimed. 

"You got knocked out and Great Uncle Ford was scraped up and Stiles was _stabbed_! You need us!" Mabel insisted.

"We don't need you two getting hurt. Look...I'm sorry you two, I know you're amazing. Especially together. But you've dealt with enough psycho weirdness with Bill." Stan said. "You've done your dues. You've saved the day. Head home and enjoy your lives."  

"How can we do that when you guys are in obvious danger!?" Dipper demanded. 

"Whoa, okay you guys, calm down." Wendy urged as she raised her hands in a placating manner. 

Stan sighed, "Look...we'll talk to your folks. If they want you kids back, you head back. If they let you stay, you stay for as long as they allow, alright?"

Mabel and Dipper exchanged a silent twin conversation before looking back at Stan and nodding. "Okay, deal." 

* * *

 

 _"I wish you'd come home Derek...it's the understatement that we miss you."_ Talia said over the phone with concern.

Derek closed his eyes and he clenched his phone. When he heard a slight crack, he loosened his grip before he broke it. "Mom, you have no idea how... _mesmerized_ I am by the fact that I get to call you again. Hear your voice..."

Even if they weren't face to face, Derek was choking up with emotions. 

 _"Then please come home, my little bear."_ Talia begged.

Derek bit his lip to keep the sob from sounding too loud. "I...I can't. Not yet."

 _"Why!?"_ She begged. 

"I couldn't...I couldn't see how Kate was using me...I caused your deaths!"

_"Derek, **no**! That woman is a vile, evil woman. Is...is that why you're away? You think we **blame** you?"_

"No...Yes? I...it's _part_ of it. But another part is that the person who _did_ save you needs my help. He's...he needs me. And I _need him_ to come home with me and I just... _please_ , mom. Please just let me...let me do this! But I swear I'll come home eventually." It was Derek's turn to beg. 

Talia sighed deeply from the other side, _"This young man...is he **special** to you?"_

Derek had to pause at the question. It didn't seem as...simple as it was posed. "We save each other. We trust each other...we trusted each other before we liked each other. And god did we not like each other! I thought he was an annoying human who had no reason to be in our world. He thought I was an over arrogant prideful Sourwolf." Derek chuckled a bit at the nickname Stiles gave him. "We weren't wrong, but we eventually realized how...we weren't acknowledging the other parts of us we had. The... _better_ , parts." 

Derek could hear the smile on his mother's face as she replied, _"Well then. Whatever is keeping you away, fix it as soon as possible. I don't just want you back with us, Der. I really want to meet this young man."_

"We will. I love you mom." Derek said with a smile of his own. 

" _I love you too, sweetie. Be safe."_

Derek hung up and...it was as hard as it was amazing. Part of him still couldn't believe it was happening, after spending so many years in his guilt. That skeptical part of him was telling him he's been kidnapped and tortured and this was his mind's way of protecting whatever strands of sanity he had left. His family was available to him, but part of him, the part that might be fighting to stay alive, is denying it. Or maybe the part where he thinks he doesn't deserved to have his family back. That part is telling him that their second chance at life would be better off without him. 

That's why he needed Stiles. He was the logical one. The one who was always right even if he was just joking at first. The outsider looking in who saw things for what they really were. 

If he validated everything presented to Derek when he got back home...he'd believe it.

* * *

 

"Here you go." Ford said as he passed Stiles a can of Pitt Cola. 

Stiles accepted it and cracked it open, "Thanks. So...now that Derek's away, what is it you wanted to tell me that you didn't want others to hear?"

Ford looked torn, he opened his mouth to speak but then closed it soon after.

"Okay, you do realize that you have to tell me _now_ , right?" Stiles asked sarcastically and expectantly. 

Ford let out a deep sigh before looking down at his feet, "I saw you in the field Stiles. I _fought_ you."

Stiles blinked, confused. Then he shook his head before saying, "We were split up. You were tossed all the way across the field. That was the last thing Grunkle Stan and I saw before the storm happened."

"Trust me, Stiles. I was very confused too. Because I too saw you with Stan on the other side of the field. But this...thing, it had your face." Ford said seriously. That had Stiles stiffening and sitting up straighter.

"Describe it." Stiles demanded.

"You...paler, very dark circles under your eyes, wearing dark clothes and a leather jacket. The shadows formed around you -- _it_ \-- and they formed these...shadow masked beings with bright yellow eyes. For a frightening moment I swore Bill had somehow come back." Ford's voice dropped into a whisper but then he looked at Stiles with a hard gaze. "But now that you've told me about this Nogitsune..."

" _No_!" Stiles shook his head. "We defeated it! We encased it! Locked it up!" 

"I know, but this thing possessed you. If you're saying this thing was as powerful as Bill, when it possessed you...it left a mark on you. A mark that when _Bill_ possessed you could have, in theory,...extracted something." Ford began to explain.

"Extracted something?" Stiles echoed, confused.

"Bill was a chaos demon from a 2-Dimensional world. He prided himself in being able to create things, especially evil chaotic things. Add in the weirdness of this town, it's not impossible that whatever darkness from the Nogitsune remained in you could have been amplified by Bill and then personified and anchored by something in the woods."

"W-what do we do?" Stiles asked, afraid. 

"I'd like to head back to Beacon and examine this Nemeton you mentioned. Also maybe speak with...Satomi and Noshiko?"

Stiles nodded at the names, "They would be the most knowledgeable. But...you really want to leave with this thing still there?"

"I've been studying it for a while now. I've marked the perimeter with those police 'do-not-cross' ribbons. It hasn't gotten larger or moved. Whatever's got it anchored there has it locked in place. Plus...I think it'll be a good ruse to get the kids back home. They're not gonna leave this alone and from what your stories claim...we don't want to risk them. But they're Pines. They're stubborn. So if we say we're driving you back..."

Stiles nodded at his uncle. Anything to keep the kids safe. "I...Alright. I guess if something like the Nogitsune is out and about, we should stop it. And the best way to stop it is to have as much information as possible."

"Good. I'll go pack and then find the kids and Stan and tell them." Ford said before leaving.

Stiles let out a sigh before going to find Derek. He was taking the call in the living room, and it seemed he was just finished. By the expression on his face, he must have been talking to one of his newly brought back family members.

"Derek?"

Derek snapped out of his thoughts when he heard his name. "Oh. Hey. What's up?"

"We're heading back to Beacon." Stiles told him.

The wolf's eyes widened, " _What_? But what about here? What about the thing in the woods?"

"My uncle wants more data before coming up with some sort of plan. He wants to talk with those who know more about the Nemeton and the Nogitsune. And we need to get the kids home but unless they think I'm heading home too, they're not budging."

Derek sighed, "I guess it can't be avoided, huh?"

Stiles smiled at Derek and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "I know it's gotta be nerve wrecking...but you'll see, it's gonna be great. You get a second chance and you _deserve_ it!"

"And you'll be there, right?" Derek asked, sheepishly but determined.

"Course I will, Sourwolf."

"Well then...I guess we're going home."  


	5. Chapter 5

"There's someone I'd like you to meet. Actually...plenty of someone's." Peter said as he approached Malia. 

"No." She said plainly. 

Peter sighed but wasn't about to give up. "Please Malia...this is your family too!"

Her eyes glowed a very bright blue and she growled at him. "That is _your_ family! That is _your_ sister, that is _Derek's_ mother, and _his_ sisters...they're not _my_ family! _My_ family is still _dead_!" 

"Malia, please...I know this is hard. And unfair. But..." Peter was at a loss for words. Not something that happened a lot, but right now he couldn't find a single word to help him. Having his family back was so damn surreal. He wasn't looking forward to the rough patched of how he killed Laura or turned Scott and Kate while also unleashing Lydia's Banshee powers. But _Malia_...that was the one thing he could be proud of. Except she didn't see herself as a Hale. This wasn't _her_ family that was brought back. 

"Look. I'm glad they're back. But let's get some things clear...I'm a Tate not a Hale. I don't know those people. They don't know me. Let's just leave it at that." She said before she stormed off. 

* * *

 

"I don't see why Stiles can't drive his own Jeep." Dipper complained for the hundredth time in the back of Roscoe. 

"Derek brought his own car, and Stiles brought his. There's no point in bringing Stan's car along too. It's bad for the environment." Ford replied as he read through the notes he made earlier. 

"How are you and Grunkle Stan getting back?" Dipper asked, suspiciously. He wasn't fully convinced this wasn't just a plot to get them to go home.

"Well, since Sixer is still on the 'No Flight' list-"

" _Thanks for that_..." Ford mumbled.

"And I'm technically dead, we'll just take the bus back." Stan replied off-handedly.

"What are you guys gonna do with that thing in the forest?" Dipper asked. 

"I'm thinking up the most strategic way that we can handle it without getting too close. It'll take some time to get in the proper materials but I assure you, Dipper, it's nothing for you to worry about." Ford sent him a smile of reassurance.

"Dipper, quit frowning. We're stopping by Stiles's home! We get to see Uncle John! And Scott's gonna let me see _all_ the animals he works with!" Mabel said happily. 

* * *

 

"I thought the idea was for your guys to get the kids home." Derek commented.

"It is. But we can't just send them off. They're..."

"Stubborn?" Derek asked with a smirk as he sent Stiles a knowing look.

Stiles elbowed him lightly. "And clever." Then his eyes became far away as he remembered the last couple of months. "The events of the summer...Dipper and Mabel proved themselves. But they _are_ just kids. I love them...and I don't ever want them in danger again. Not if I can help it." 

"Hey...we'll make sure they're safe while in Beacon. You have my word." Derek promised. 

Stiles smiled at Derek before he got a bit serious. "You're not going to use me as an excuse not to see your family, right? I get that it can be overwhelming, Derek. But..."

"I know, Stiles. I know. And I won't. I just...I need you to tell me it's real. That I'm not just being held captive somewhere and this is just a dream."

"You're possibly dying and you're dreaming of _me_?" Stiles asked skeptically.

"It's happened before." Derek commented with a shrug.

"What? When?"

"Before Kate kidnapped me and de-aged me. I guess I needed someone I trusted who was reason and logic. So it was you I saw." Derek said quietly.

 "You're not dreaming, Derek. This is real...you're getting your second chance. You're going to be happy." Stiles told him. 

Derek took a deep breath and took in Stiles's words. This was real. 

* * *

 

"So you haven't told mom that it was Peter who killed you?" Cora asked Laura as they did some shopping to restock the house. 

Laura sighed before throwing another item into the nearly full cart. "It's not that easy. Mom remembers Peter to still be...Peter, but not to that extent. To her he's still her baby brother."

"Who killed you. Went around biting people. It's thanks to him we have a True Alpha, a Banshee, and a Were-Jaguar on the loose." Cora deadpanned. 

"From what I've gathered two out of three are good things." 

"Maybe...I didn't really care to interact much with the McCall pack. I guess they have come a long way. But now that's three kinda powerful packs in Beacon. Doesn't that...affect the dynamic somehow?" Cora asked.

"Of course it does. Mom will have to have a meeting with Scott McCall and Satomi Ito. Divide territories, make official treaties, set up rules and regulations about full moons, turning, and a bunch of other stuff." Laura replied. 

"Isn't it weird that mom came back as an Alpha?" Cora commented after a moment of silence as they made it to another isle.

Laura raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you mean?"

"You were an Alpha. So was Derek for a bit. Peter too. You were killed, and you're not an Alpha now. Derek gave up his powers saving me. Peter was killed and when he came back it was without his Alpha status. But mom's an Alpha still. If she came back from the dead shouldn't she be a Beta or something?" 

"Maybe it's because mom was born to be an Alpha? She was - _is_ \- a powerful one, remember." Laura said, remembering to correct herself. Unlike some of the family members who died that night, even if she too eventually perished, she went for some time learning to accept her mother was gone. 

"Still seems like something else is at work here." Cora commented. 

"Maybe it's something we'll learn when Derek comes back with that friend of his." Laura said. Then she sent her sister a grin. "Is he cute?"

"In a nerdy sort of way. Sarcastic. Not ruled by his emotions....he feels them. But doesn't let it stop him." Cora commented. 

* * *

 

"UNCLE JOHN! UNCLE JOHN HI! IT'S ME MABEL! HIIIIIIIIII!" 

"Hey Uncle John!"

"Dipper, Mabel. Your parents just called about you spending the night before heading back home...they weren't too happy." The chided them with a stern glare. 

"Family comes first and ours was in trouble. We had to help!" Mabel insisted as she pulled Waddles out of Roscoe. 

"It's good to see you Johnathon." Ford greeted his nephew with a handshake. He's talked with the man before, but honestly just learned about him over the summer. He felt like this was where their relationship was still at. 

Stanley on the other hand pulled the Sheriff into a headlock. "Johnny-boy! Good to see ya! Looking great!" 

"Uncle Stan!" The Sheriff struggled as he pushed Stan off him before pulling him into a hug. "I'd say you look awful but I won't insult Uncle Ford." 

"Pffftt....I look awesome, Ford looks like a nerd, and it looks like we can all use some grub. You're buying."

The Sheriff rolled his eyes. "Let's head back to the house. We can order some pizza." The Sheriff said.

"I WANNA RIDE SHOTGUN IN THE CRUISER! It'd be nice to finally sit in the front of one of those things, right guys?" Mabel asked her Grunkles, Dipper, and Stiles. 

All of whom chuckled nervously while the Sheriff just looked unimpressed. 

"I guess I should head home." Derek broke the silence as he sheepishly pointed to his car. It seemed like some Stilinski/Pines family bonding was going to happen. He himself should probably stop hiding from his own family. He brought Stiles back and confirmed that it was real. Stiles had saved his family. Derek still felt indebted to him and would help him help his great uncles with whatever they were dealing with back in Gravity Falls. But he sensed that that could wait a day. Or however long it took to get the kids home. 

"What? No way, dude. We drove all the way from Gravity Falls to Beacon with like...only snacks. Come eat with us." Stiles invited. 

Derek was about to decline when Ford added. "I would like a word with you as well. You know...bit of the nitty gritty information on how to proceed now that we're here." 

"Um...if you're sure."

"You saved out butts, least we can do is buy you a pizza." Stan said with a wave of his hand as he headed back to the driver's seat of Roscoe.

"Wait, what did Derek save you from?" The Sheriff asked.

**_*WEEWOOWEEWOOWEEWOO*_ **

"THE SIRENS WORK!" Mabel cried happily from the cruiser.  

"Pizza! Pizza! Pizza! Pizza!" Dipper, Stan, and Mabel began to chant. 

Stiles looked at Derek. "Come on. Just a slice. I'll come home with you after...I, uh, I mean, I'll head back...to the Hale House, with you to uh...answer stuff and things and inquiries." 

"Yeah, okay. I...I love pizza." Derek replied with a small grin. 

* * *

 

"Hey mom..." Derek's not sure he'll ever get used to saying that. Without it being to a headstone and then breaking down because of guilt and shame. 

_"Der-bear! Where are you?"_ Talia asked over the phone. 

With his hearing could hear his father and his uncle Jared( his mother's older brother) in the background. 

"I'm uh...I'm actually back in town." Derek mumbled as he mentally cursed his stuttering. He wasn't sure why he kept doing it. He was more confident than that but every time he speaks with his mother he's...he's a kid again. 

_"What? Does that mean you'll be home soon? Did you solve the problem with your friend?"_

"Sorta. We're actually back for some info. Stiles and his Great Uncles would love to speak with you when you have time." Derek said, putting out the main reason for his calling. Well, other than alerting his mother that he was back in town. 

_"Of course. I'm sure we can set up a proper meeting. I've got questions of my own. Also, how close are you with...Malia?"_

Malia? Derek raised an eyebrow at the question and actually lowered his head in shame. He had his reasons for not getting too close to her. Part of him thought he was cursed and those around him suffered. She was technically his cousin but they never bonded. 

"Not very. But Stiles is. They uh...they dated." Derek said awkward and he wasn't sure why that left an unsettling taste in his mouth. 

_"Oh."_

"Oh? What oh?" Derek demanded. 

_"Oh, nothing, sweetheart. Look, Peter has just informed me of her status. We want her to join us a bit more but...she's reluctant. I figured if maybe you two were close, maybe you could convince her."_

"I'm sorry mom. We're kinda not. There wasn't ever really time. Peter didn't make the best case for being a Hale and then I kinda had to leave town...she stayed and I think considered herself more a Tate than a Hale."

_"Yeah, that's what we're getting at. I'd still like her to be more involved."_

"We'll see what we can do. I know how big family is for us...and hopefully she will too." 

_"Right. So when shall we expect you home?"_

"Um...later. I'm at Stiles's. His family invited me for pizza." Derek replied. 

_"Alright. See you soon, Der-Bear. Love you."_

"Love you too mom." Derek hung up with a smile on his face. His eyes were glistening a bit too but he had enough control to not start crying. 

"So...whatever Stiles wished for in Globnar involved you, huh?"

Derek turned to be face with face with Dipper. 

"Don't you know it's rude to eavesdrop?" 

"If it'll keep my family safe from werewolves, I don't care!" Dipper raised his voice but not too much to raise alarm. 

"Look kid, whatever your issue is with me, keep it to yourself." Derek said, going back to his 'too cool' and 'I don't care' attitude. 

"Listen here you jerk!" Dipper pointed at Derek while glaring at him angrily. "Stiles is an awesome person who does all he can to make those he cares about happy. If you're just gonna use him or hurt him, just remember this warning. Because if you hurt my cousin, you'll pay!"

"With hugs and kittens!" Mabel exclaimed as she jumped out of nowhere. She looked between Dipper and Derek before asking, "What are we talking about?"

Dipper face palmed before turning away and heading back into the kitchen. 

Mabel turned to Derek and smiled. "He's just afraid of losing Stiles...it almost happened and it sucked. But don't worry, I know you're not gonna hurt him. And if you need any help, just ask me. I'm a great matchmaker~" 

She was gone before Derek could ask about what happened, or nearly happened to Stiles that had Dipper worried about losing him. And also ask about the matchmaker commenter. 

"Derek, pizza's getting cold!" Stiles called to him. 

No matter how much more he learned, more and more questions seemed to keep rising. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been forever since I've updated ANY of my stories. I'm hopefully working to fixing that. Please forgive my hectic schedule!
> 
> Also...Derek may seem a bit out of character here but I think being overwhelmed with the guilt still, while also having a second chance have soften him. Plus by season 4 Derek wasn't as hard and 'cold' as they made him out to be in season one. He's stammering a lot and stuttering but that's on purpose. He's in a very emotionally confused place right now and he's not the best with emotions....


	6. Chapter 6

“I think we need to talk.”

Laura looked up from the book she was reading when Peter spoke up. She had an idea of what the conversation would be about but she didn’t really want to have it. Cora managed to fill her in on everything that’s happened since her death. Part of her understood…another part held a grudge.

Still, she didn’t want to talk about it for more reasons than because it made it uncomfortable. She feared being overheard and as much as Peter might deserve some heated glares, she didn’t want the family to shun him.

Laura’s never seen Peter emotional, but even she caught him crying as he hugged his sister and brother. It was hard to imagine Peter with emotions that didn’t reflect his normal attitude but  she had to remember that he too lost everyone.

“Any way at all that this conversation can just… _not_ happen?”

Peter sighed deeply and ran his hand through his hair. “I wish. But it needs to happen. For whatever the hell is left of my sanity…please.”

It was the last word that did it.

Peter wasn’t a beggar. He hated it.

Laura nodded and decided they could go for a drive. She’s missed eating a lot and now knows not to take anything for granted.

She lets Peter drive and even pick whatever fast-food place he wants. They order first, giving them something to do to fill in the silence previously done by the radio. Fries to munch on, soda to sip. They park in the parking lot, roll down the windows, turn off the engine, and just much on their food for a while in silence.

“I killed you.”

“Wow. Blunt as any Hale has ever been.” Laura deadpanned before taking a sip of her drink.

Peter rolled his eyes. “It’s why we’re here. No use beating around the bush.”

“Alright. We stated what happened. What do you want?”

“Are you going to tell Talia?” Peter asked as he looked ahead, focusing on the play area of the fast-food restaurant.

“Maybe one day…from what I’ve gathered from Cora, there’s a chance she might learn about it from somewhere else. So I don’t know if she should hear it from me or someone else.” Laura replied honestly.

There seems to be very little people who knew about the apparent two time lines. But with some people needing to know certain facts, it might be inevitable. Scott McCall being a True Alpha is an amazing fact to many of the Hales. But digging into how exactly Scott become a werewolf in the first place might bring up the fact that for a while Peter had been Alpha…and then it might be discovered how he became an Alpha.

“I want to be the one to tell her.” Peter said after another pause.

That made Laura raise an eyebrow at him. “Really? Not the best case scenario in every day conversation. You want to tell your older sister you killed her oldest child for her power?”

“I was-“

“In a bad place mentally after the years in pain and hatred caused by the fire set by the Argents. I know. I just…mom and I died at different times. I just feel like…” Laura made a helpless gesture with her hands before letting out a deep sigh. “Can’t we just...let things be? We’re all back! We’re all alive and everyone else who became something is still something and the packs are working things through. Do we really have to rock the boat?”

The Peter she knew would jump at the chance. To get off scot-free and not be at fault to anything. But this wasn’t the Peter she knew anymore. This one has been through some things…has died himself. _And_ was now a father.

Right now he looked torn and pained. His eyes shining with emotions. A low growl actually escaped him.

“The last time I spoke with my sister before she died…I was a _child_ in her eyes. I have been a child many years after her death. I’m…I’m a _father_ now! But I’m so… _not_ ready. I wasn’t ready to be an Alpha! I’m not ready to be a father! I hated Talia for keeping Malia a secret from me until I realized…until I _understood_ the sort of monster I was!”

“Peter, you’re not making any sense…” Laura told him with worry.

“I _know_! I haven’t been making sense for years! Not since everyone died! I _need_ my family, okay? I _need_ them but…I…I don’t…I don’t wanna be an Omega, Laura.” Peter whispered the last part as he rested his head against the steering wheel. Laura’s nose caught scent of something salty and she realized from Peter’s chemo-signals that he was crying.

It took a moment before Laura could piece everything together. Peter knew they could hide this from Talia. But he also knew the chances of her figuring it out from someone else. Peter feared Talia’s reaction because it might be the reason she kicks him out. After years of grieving in his own way, to have them back was as much of a dream come true for Peter as it was for Derek or Cora.

To be exiled and forced to remain a lonely Omega would be torture.

Laura reached out her hand and took his. Peter looked over and saw Laura offer him a small smile.

They weren’t the innocent, albeit bratty, children they were before the fire. They’ve been through hell, and they remember it.

* * *

 

  
  
Derek arrived home rather late. Despite all the wanting to reunite and hang out, when he arrived, only his parents were awake to greet him. And that only lasted a few minutes before they all headed to bed.

Now Derek was lying on his bed, clenching his eyes because the sun was beaming in brightly, and forcing him into consciousness. But that wasn’t what was forcing him to wake up. There was weight on his chest and he knew, even before opening his eyes, that he was surrounded.

“He smells like pizza. No fairs. I want pizza.”

“Was he always this scruffy? His beards like daddy’s.”

“Not true. Mine’s better.” Derek grumbled as he finally opened his eyes. There were many squeals from his cousins that made him wince. Then he was tackled and jumped on.

“Der-bear!”

“Aunt Talia said to let you sleeps but that we’re gonna have guests so we cames to wake you up!”

“Yeah, yeah! So wake up!”

“Alright, alright….geeze.” Derek said with a smile before stretching. His arms were wide and he even yawned. The perfect distraction before he grabbed them all and hugged the hell out of them.

They all squealed some more and tried to free themselves but Derek held on to them. Part of it was him allowing himself to be like he used to be. The fun cousin who would love to play with them. Another part was the guilt he’s carried for so long for their deaths.

Three of his younger cousins. Lily the oldest with light brown hair and green eyes. Her mother was Alice, who was his dad’s younger sister. She had an older brother named Josh. Then there was Merlin. Uncle Jared’s blond haired, blue eyed son. They also had two slightly older daughters named Helena and Selena. His Uncle Jared and his wife, Emma, loved mythologies and that’s where they got their children’s names from. And lastly, the baby of the family…Luna. She was Lily and Josh’s sister as well, and so far like her brother Josh, human.

After some struggling to get up properly with the kids who were using him as a walking jungle gym, they finally made it downstairs.

He was greeted with hugs and hair ruffles and so many other forms of comfort and cuddling…it took years off his life. For once in a very long time he doesn’t feel as old and as burdened. The guilt will always be there but now…it’s not suffocating.

As he looked at his family making a mess at the dinner table enjoying a hearty breakfast, he knew this was only possible because of Stiles.

“Derek smells like pizza. Can we have pizza?” Merlin asked his parents.

“I don’t see why not.” Jared told his son as he stuffed his mouth with pancakes. Then he looked at Talia and asked. “What says you, Alpha?”

“No cooking, everyone fed, and no need to leave the house? Sounds like the perfect idea.” Talia replied as she served Derek his breakfast. She ruffled his hair and kissed his forehead. He didn’t care if he looked like a momma’s boy then and there. He smiled happily. Something he hasn’t done in a long time.

“So you were with Stiles last night?” Cora asked with a smirk.

“His family invited me to stay.” Derek defended himself. He could feel everyone’s stares on him, which only made the blush creeping up the back of his neck even brighter.

“What sort of trouble is that spaz in now?” Peter commented with an eye roll. Though he did pay attention to Derek. Though he would never voice it out loud, he respected Stiles. He was the only human he’s ever met outside of the family who could ever keep up. Not only that but actually be helpful and not let his emotions cloud his logic…for long anyway. The kid also risked his life over and over again for the sake of his friends and other innocent people. If he was in trouble, then Derek would be there to help too..and so would Malia. Basically…Stiles’s problem was  Hale problem.

“Who exactly is this kid, again?” Jared asked. “All I know is that he’s the reason we’re all alive again.”

“His name is Stiles.” Derek began.

“What sort of name is Stiles?” Josh asked. Derek felt a pang in his chest because he remembered having that Hale-cool attitude.

“The name of a human whose taken on werewolves, Alphas, Kanimas, dark druids, hunters, and a whole bunch of other things because it was the right thing to do…and he’s a friend.” Derek said. They all looked at him with different expressions ranging from awe to confusion to doubt to nonchalance.

“What sort of trouble is his family in?” Sam asked.

“I don’t know. Not exactly…the town he was staying in has had some weirdness in it. Stiles’s great-uncles are trying to figure it out but they’ve come to gather information.” Derek answered.

“Has he really fought against all those things?” Josh asked after a moment.

“Yeah. And then some.” Derek said proudly. He could guess why Josh was in awe. Part of being a human in a wolf pack, you’re left feeling lesser than those who were wolves. To know Derek was friends with humans that could do all that? It was inspiring.

“And he’s coming over?” Alice asked with a smile towards her son.

“Mom’s having a meeting with him and his Great Uncle Ford later in the afternoon.” Derek replied.

“His great-uncle Ford and him.” Uncle Jared corrected cheekily.

Laura rolled her eyes at him. “Are you sure?”

“I’ve been dead for a few years, give me a break if I’m wrong!”

The whole family burst out laughing and continued with their meal. Derek and Peter did both pause at how… _natural_ it all seemed.

* * *

 

 

“Thanks for convincing Grunkle Stan to not come. I love the guy, but…”

“Stanley’s tactics aren’t as refined in all situations.” Ford sent Stiles a small, all-knowing smirk.

“Yeah. Also…remember, please don’t geek out too much and real in the scientific curiosity. I’ve met some of the Hales and I’m sure we can easily insult them…we do not want that. Even though I’m sure we can hold our own.”

“Yes, yes. Anything else?”

“Yeah. Listen, great-uncle Ford…whatever is in the woods in Gravity Falls that seemed to have been born from whatever the Nogitsune left inside of me…I get that we may have to bring it up but…I don’t want Derek or his family to think I’m in danger of being possessed again.”

“But you’re not.” Ford said slowly before his eyes narrowed and he asked. “What’s going on?”

“Bill’s been in my mind…and I’ve talked to the… _echo_ of myself? My possessed self. It’s like…a manifested memory personified. It scares me sometimes. Keeps me awake…even after Bill’s defeat I sometimes feel like I’m losing my mind.” Stiles admitted.

Ford looked at him with great concern and placed a hand on his shoulder. “My boy, why didn’t you ever tell me this? Does Stanley know, at least?”

Stiles shook his head. “The closest I’ve come to sharing this with anyone is Dipper when he chased after Bill in my mind but…It’s not something I can burden a 13 year old with.” He sighed before speaking again. “I don’t want Derek to think he has to worry about me. He’ll use it as an excuse to be away from his family because he’ll think he’s not good enough for a second chance with them. I meant it when I told him I wouldn’t be used as an excuse…I also don’t want to be seen as weak.” He said the last part as he looked down with shame.

Ford made him look up and said fiercely. “Stiles…you are anything _but_ weak. But you have my word. We’ll stick to the facts. And your possession won’t be brought up by me.”

“Thanks great-uncle Ford.” Stiles smiled up at him before they headed to the Hale house.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't decided if these are ALL the Hales but I am writing this at like 4 in the morning so forgive me for the randomness and blah. This is a chart to help me and you as we go on this crazy ride. Also...Talia, Jared, and Peter are siblings. Alice is Sam's(Papa Hale) sister. And Edmund is just the human brought into all this. 
> 
>  
> 
> Talia (Alpha)& Sam(Alpha’s Mate) = Laura(Alpha Heir ), Derek(Evolved Werewolf), Cora(Beta)
> 
> Jared(Beta) & Emma(Beta) = Merlin(Beta), Helena(Beta). Selena(Beta)
> 
> Peter(Omega)& Corinne = Malia(Omega)
> 
> Alice(Beta) & Edmund(Human) = Lily(Beta), Josh(Human), Luna (Human)


	7. Chapter 7

_“Hey dude! How’s Beacon Hills?”_ Soos asked through their Skype call.

“It’s pretty cool. Mabel got to release all the caged animals at the clinic where Scott works and led her own fury army of cuteness or whatever. It was kinda cool.” Dipper said with an amused grin. Deaton had been less amused but he couldn’t really stay mad at Mabel. “How’s Melody?”

Soos let out a dreamy sigh _. “Awesome…”_

“Heh, you got it bad, man.”

_“That I do, bro. That I do. Anyway…what’s up?”_

“Why would something be up?” Dipper asked, defensively, voice cracking.

_“Dude, we’re pterodactyl bros, bro. I know you. Plus, after you save the world from a 2-Dimensional one eyed monster kind makes pals really close. And you’re not as mysterious as you’d like to think you are.”_

“Thanks for that.” Dipper deadpanned. Then he sighed and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Just feeling a little down, I guess. I never realized that coming to visit Stiles in his home would mean less Stiles. I mean, I get it…this is where his friends are. And he’s kinda totally popular and has a million friends…I just…he always made time for me, ya know?”

_“Hey, come on dawg. Isn’t something weird going on though? I’m sure it’s not like, personal, or anything. Just…business.”_

“But I’m always the one that helps Stiles! Now he, Stan, and Great Uncle Ford are hiding things from me and Mabel and it’s not fair!”

_“So? Do what you always do. Snoop, dawg! Hey…was that a pun? I’ll take it as a pun.”_

_“Soos, tourist bus!”_

_“Coming! Gotta go, dude. Talk to Stiles or go be Mystery Twins with Ham-Bone.”_

“Thanks Soos. Chat with you later.”

* * *

“Whoa…he’s got six fingers!”  
“Weird…”  
“Josh!”  
“What? He does!”

“Uh…please excuse my cousin. He’s young an-“ Derek began, blushing madly in embarrassment as he showed Stiles and Ford to the living room.

Ford waved it off. “It was an abnormality I was born with it. Trust me, I’m not bothered. He’s young and isn’t something seen every day.”

“Still, he should be more polite.” Alice said as she too looked embarrassed. “May I get either of you anything?”

“I was born in a different era. Many decades ago. If your boy could tell me something I haven’t heard before I’ll give him all the money in my wallet. And I’m fine, thank you.”

“I’m good too. We’re kind of on a schedule too, so we’d like to get to the nitty-gritty if it’s alright.” Stiles said as he tried not gawk at all the other Hales.

He might have seen them all when they were alive in different functions and gatherings, but after all they’ve been through and survived, all he’s learned that’s really out there…it was weird seeing them in the flesh.

That made Derek frown, “What’s going on?”

“Nothing dangerous, dude. We still have the twins with us. As much as we’d like answers to help back in Gravity Falls, well…it’s not every day that we can all be in the same town. Dad’s taking the night off and we’re gonna go lazer-tagging.” Stiles replied.

Derek forced himself to relax, shoulders slouching as he realized that he was…overreacting. And his family probably noticed it too. He didn’t want to give the impression that everything he heard he took it as a bad omen. That he was always ready to face off against the next big bad guy…but he was.

“Right then. Well, let me formally introduce myself. I’m Talia Hale, Alpha of the Hale pack. How can I help?”

“There’s something weird and ominous happening back in Gravity Falls. We have reasons to believe the a similar power source like that of the Nemeton could be at work. I know that it’s just about impossible to stop that but…maybe a way of locking it back up?”

Talia looked between the two of them and frowned. “The Nemeton is a very powerful piece of magic. Our pack does it’s best not to get involved with whatever messes it causes.”

Stiles and Derek shared a look of nervous glances. Talia looked at her son, “Has something happened to suggest otherwise?”

“We learned from the Kitsune who helped lock away the power that fueled the Nemeton on how and why the tree came to be… that power got out and we had to deal with it. Since then…the Nemeton’s been awakened.” Stiles said evenly.

“ _What_?” Talia demanded, sitting up straighter.

“It was a real mess. Trying to make a long story short…Deucalion couldn’t reason with Gerard Argent and Argent blinded him. Deucalion’s pack thought him incapable of leading his pack anymore and tried to turn on him. He killed them all and became a super Alpha and nicked named himself the Demon Wolf. He got other Alphas to kill their packs and become mega Alphas too and then created a pack of Alphas.” Peter drawled as he lazed in and plopped himself somehow elegantly on the couch.

“That sounds like the bull shittiest made up story ever!” Jared exclaimed.

“It sounds impossible and far fetched but it’s true.” Derek said with all the seriousness he could.

“Evil Alpha pack that terrorized everyone…yeah.” Stiles confirmed.

Cora, from her place in the background, wanted to chime in and confirm it too but kept quiet. She feared that outing Derek as an Alpha would lead to how he gained his powers and he wasn’t sure Peter and Laura had spoken to her mother yet.

“Okay…so then what happened and how does that tie in with the Nemeton?” Sam asked.

“Kali couldn’t completely kill her pack…her Emissary survived. Barely. She was angry but she knew very little if anything could stop a pack of Alphas…” Derek said, shame filling him for how easily he was manipulated by her. How easily used.

“She awakened the Nemeton for it’s power.” Talia summarized.

“Bingo.” Peter said with a pointer gun at his older sister. He was trying to remain the calm, cool, and collected person they remember. It was hard, but he was doing it.

“Sacrificing people of all sorts, all innocent. The only good thing was that’s how my dad finally learned what I was really doing…and it’s not good- _good_ but…the weight of having to constantly lie to him to keep him safe was getting _too_ heavy.” Stiles said. The he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly as he cleared his throat and continued. “We never knew what happened after she was defeated and Scott became a True Alpha.”

“Oh I killed her.” Peter said with glee.

All eyes on him, he merely shrugged. “She poisoned Cora and threatened Derek…plus  other reasons.”

“Where and how did you kill her?” Stiles asked.

“Well, she tried to reach the Nemeton…I believe she  only lived after Kali’s attack because it saved her last time, right?” Peter asked  with a nonchalant shrug. “She thought she could do it again and I wasn’t having any one else stronger and more eviler than me walking around so I slit her throat.”

“On the Nemeton?” Ford was the one who asked before he looked at Stiles. “This tree’s powers are activated through sacrifice right? She was a druid…even if turned dark. Which could more arguably make it even more powerful. Her blood was magic. Being killed on the Nemton must have had some effects.”

“Probably?” Stiles stated though phrased like a question.

“All this story telling of memory lane is fun and all, but how does this help you again?” Peter asked.

“We need help in figuring how to contain power if we can’t expel it or have it destroyed.” Ford replied.

“It took an entire coven of druids to lock up the Nogitsune the first time according to Satomi. And all the crap we had to deal with getting it locked up again wasn’t easy either.” Derek said with his trademark frown.

“Wait, you’ve dealt with stuff like that?” His father asked him. Derek looked away a bit sheepishly. It was never him who dealt with dangerous stuff. Sure, sometimes Peter got him involved in matters they weren’t supposed to even know about, but that was it. And Peter only did it because they were thought to be ‘just kids’. Laura and Jared were always the ones helping Talia and Sam when things happened. Jared being the oldest Hale sibling, and Laura because she was Alpha Heir.

“If it wasn’t for Derek, we’d have been lost in many situations.” Stiles was quick to say.

“When he wasn’t being a brooding, angst filled brat.” Peter snorted. Both Derek and Stiles sent  glares, “What? Let’s face it, if anyone in this room deserves credit, as much as it pains me to admit, it’s Stiles. Despite being human he’s…rather resourceful and very stubborn.”

“Did…did you just compliment me?” Stiles asked, confused.

“I was just stating facts. Even if the situations scared you and trust me, you _reeked_ of fear. You didn’t let that stop you.”

“I didn’t think it possible for you praise anyone but yourself.” Stiles told him with skepticism lacing his voice.

“Again, _not_ doing that. Taking into consideration the lengths you’ve gone through before, always somehow finding yourself fin the worst of trouble, I can’t help but ask how serious this thing in Gravity Falls is.” Peter chimed in, though his eyes narrowed at Ford.

Ford kept his eyes on Peter, unblinking. He’s been threatened many times before. His own twin and father were master poke players, and he wasn’t one to show fear.

“At the moment it’s an alarming threat what we’re trying to neutralize before it causes any damage. If that’s all, we still have to speak to Satomi Ito.” Ford said as he made a move to stand.

“Wait! Don’t listen to Peter. He’s a rude asshole. Always has been. We want to help!” Derek’s voice was a bit stressed as he glared harshly at Peter but looked imploringly at Stiles. He couldn’t _not_ involve him in whatever was going on. He had to help. He _owed_ it to him.

“Easy, lad.” Ford raised his hands in a calm manor. “As we said before, we have  schedule to keep to today. This is just a basic info run. If there’s anything more you can think of, we can discuss it at length another day. We do want to reach out to Ito-Sama before we got meet with our family. From what Stiles has told me, we don’t want to intrude in your reunion either.”

“We’ll have some notes ready for you by tomorrow, Mr. Pines.” Talia said professionally as she stood up at the same time as Ford and Stiles. Derek followed and was about to protest when his mother sent him a look.  Smiling back at their visitors she extended an invitation to dinner. “I think it’s time our pack had a meeting with the Sheriff. Nothing too serious, but still bring up the topic of how to proceed from here on out. Our Sunday  grill outs have always been a big affair. Will you all be able to come?”

“If my twin brother’s lack of tact and insincerity doesn’t bother you, I’d think we’d more than be willing. What say you, Stiles?” Ford asked him as they reached the door.

“Seriously, Grunkle Stan might try to strike a deal with one of you guys to guest star as a side attraction in the Mystery Shack part time…hell, for half the summer he made my cousin Dipper dress up as a wolf boy.” Stiles deadpanned.

“Wolf boy?” Cora asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Think…someone trying to cosplay a shifted werewolf form.” Stiles offered up the image.

“We have our own members we hope you won’t take seriously, so I think it’ll even itself out.” Talia stated.

“Right. Can I bring Scott? He’d probably really should be here too.” Stiles added.

Talia made a face. “We will have to meet soon, yes. But I’d rather that be on a different occasion. But that reminds me…would you be able to convince _Malia_ to come?”

Stiles saw how Peter tensed in an almost comically way but taking into light everything he knows about their relationship, Malia’s situation, and this…he could understand why they would need help getting Malia to come by.

“Sure.” Stiles said with a shit eating grin. “You’ll just have to promise to have pizza and deer. She likes it…rare.”


	8. Chapter 8

“I'm not going so don't even bother asking.” Malia said without looking up from her laptop. 

 

Stiles sat down across from her with a soft smile. “I know why you don't want to go but I'm going to ask you anyway.” 

 

“They're not  _ my _ family. I don't have to go.” Malia said stubbornly. 

 

“Not as Peter's daughter or Derek's cousin or a Hale. No. But I'd like you to come as my friend.”

 

Malia closed her laptop and eyed him carefully. “They'll ask me things. Normal things like how I am or what I like and I don't have normal answers.” She said plainly.

 

Stiles chuckled. “They're werewolves. I think they'll be okay with you being you and even if they're not, who cares?”

 

“Peter…” she sighed and ran her hand through her hair. “We were making….  _ okay  _ progress.” 

 

Stiles raised an eyebrow. “Were you making  _ any _ progress?” 

 

“That's besides the point!” 

 

“Are you… nervous?” Stiles asked with small, understanding, smile. 

 

“... The Peter they know isn't the Peter we know. He'll act different. If I have grown to like this Peter even a little bit…” she squinted her eyes and made a small measuring sign with her index finger and thumb. “It's all going to change.” 

 

“You don't know that.” 

 

“Peter went from not caring what anyone said because anyone whose opinion he cared about was dead. Now they're not… I'm not going.”

* * *

 

 -=~=-

“Are you really sure we should be doing this Dipper? Snooping around in some stranger’s place is one thing. But this is Stiles. And I love him, but I don’t think I need to know what he hides in his sock drawer that isn’t socks.” Mabel stated plainly from the threshold. 

 

“What do you think teenage boys hide in their sock drawers?” Dipper stopped his searching to raise an eyebrow at his sister. 

 

Mabel shrugged. “I dunno. Weird, gross stuff. Like in the shows. You know...dirty magazines.”

 

“I think it’s all online now, Mabel. And if we’re gonna find out more about what it is they’re doing to stop whatever it was that hurt them in Gravity Falls, we need more information. And Stiles is aaaaallll about information! So help me look.”

 

Mabel sighed but agreed. Waddles, who had been sniffing around in the hallway while Mabel waited in the middle of the doorframe, came bustling into Stiles’ room and took a sniffing tour. He finally settled in between Stiles lacrosse duffel. Mabel snorted. She placed her hands on her hips and shook her head fondly. “A pig and his sty…”

 

“Mabel. Are you going to help me or not?” Dipper asked, growing annoyed. 

 

“I am. But I still don’t understand why we just don’t ask Stiles? Communication is key for relationships and not just romantic ones. Plus, it’ll be easier than this. Stiles’s written thoughts are as messy as Grunkle Stan’s hygiene habits. Bu-zing!”

 

Dipper sighed as he shut the drawer he finished searching. “They think they’re keeping us safe by keeping us out. And like, since Derek showed up, Stiles is being all chummy with him and not even looking at me.”

 

“You’re jealous of Derek? Well, I guess I can understand. He’s  _ gorgeous _ !” Mabel said with a dreamy sigh. 

 

“Not helping.” Dipper deadpanned.

 

“Oh Dipper, you’re such a  _ boy  _ sometimes. And no need to be jelly, bro-bro. Look, if you want to hang out with Stiles, just ask him to hang out. It’s only complicated if you make it complicated….which you do. So no list making!” 

 

“You really think he’ll want to hang out with me?” Dipper asked, voice full of uncertainty. 

 

“Just because you’re a dork, doesn’t mean you’re not fun...most of the time.” She smirked. Dipper rolled his eyes a bit and shoved her playfully.

* * *

 

 

-=~=-

 

“So the town is still standing?”

 

_ “No more less than normal, dude. Chillax for a bit, huh, Stilinski?” _

 

Stiles sighed, “I would love to, Wen. But...I can’t.”

 

_ “Dude...I get it. Trust me. Especially after this summer. But you know you can count on me, right? I can totally hot wire Toby’s car or something and be down there in like...two hours.” _

 

“You don’t have a licence yet. And it takes more than two hours.”

 

_ “Not if you ignore the speed limit.” _

 

“You know my dad’s a cop right?” Stiles asked with a smirk. 

 

_ “Sometimes I’m surprise you remember. Or do  _ **_you_ ** _ want me to remind you of  _ **_every_ ** _ illegal thing you’ve done in Gravity Falls? I can. Alphabetically or chronologically too.” _

 

“Wen, come on. The NSA records these calls. Let’s not get me in more trouble.” 

 

_ “We all know you can do that perfectly okay by yourself. Try not to have too much fun without me. Anyway, I gotta go. Call ya soon?” _

 

“Yeah. Totally. Later dude.” Stiles pocketed his phone as he reached the table his Grunkles had chosen for their lunch. It was a great place to get some good grub, and also plan accordingly without prying ears. 

 

“That Wendy?” Stan asked as Stiles sat down. “How’s the Shack? Soos keeping up the place?”

 

“Soos worshipped you and what the Shack stood for. He’s not gonna let you down.” Stiles told him, and they all knew it was true.

 

“Not like I’m worried or anything. Just gotta know so he’ll know and keep on his toes is all.” Stan sniffed as he tried to play it cool. 

 

Stiles rolled his eyes. “They’re fine.”

 

“And if we wish to keep it as such, along with the other residents of Gravity Falls, we have to figure out how to stop that thing in the woods.” Ford said as he placed a drawn map of the area. It was marked from what Ford remembered it being before Weirdmageddon, and to what he remembered from that day they went to study it and were attacked. 

 

“Weren’t those freakishly good looking wanna be Twilight pups gonna help us? What with them knowing how to stop that nugget thing.”

 

“Nogitsune.”   
“Nogitsune.”

 

Both Stiles and Ford corrected. Stiles with deadpan sarcasm and Ford with an unimpressed glower. 

 

“Stanley, you need to take this seriously. This isn’t a joke.”

 

“You’re right. What is a joke are the games you wanna play for the sake of...what? They got information, we need it. Why do we have to wait?”

 

“Things don’t just work like that. People don’t just give you things because you want them to.” Ford said.

 

“No, you’re right about that. Which is why we take it...and if you’re such a pansy about it, we’ll ‘borrow’ it.”

 

Ford began to stutter as he tried to grab his words to get it through to his brother. But luckily Stiles jumped in. 

 

“We’re not stealing from the Hales. Grunkle Stan, you wouldn’t just barge into a Don’s office and start making demands right? Especially when you’re nothing but a grunt. There’s no respect. No power. They were all just brought back. They feel weird considering all the craps that’s gone down since they’ve been gone. All the power has shifted and it’s still shifting. They’re also playing by the rules of old and it’s far more traditional, so we wait…”

 

“Listen to Stiles, you knucklehead. The last thing we need to do is start a war with werewolves.” Ford said seriously.

 

“But the first thing we need to focus is getting the twins home, and Stiles and Johnny to safety.” Stan said as seriously as his brother.

 

Stiles perked up at that as he looked between the two. “What? What do you mean?”

 

“Tell him.” Stan said as he crossed his arms and looked at his brother.

 

“Tell me what?” Stiles demanded.

 

“Stiles...we’ve been talking.” Ford began.

 

“It ain’t safe here, kid.” Stan said bluntly. Then added. “We think you and your old man should move. Gravity Falls. Piedmont. Anywhere but a place full of danger.”

 

“Danger is everywhere! And besides dad’s the  _ sheriff _ ! He has a duty. This is our home! We can’t and we won’t leave!”

 

“Kid...we saw you die. For six  _ terrifying  _ minutes...I held your corpse.” Stan said and the temperature seemed to drop a few degrees. 

 

Stiles tensed and he took a moment to close his eyes and just breathe. He couldn’t help but flashback to those horrible moments in Weirdmageddon. He’d managed to find Pacifica on his way towards the Shack in hopes of finding his family. Monsters had been after them. He got her inside the safety of the bubble but he...he hadn’t. 

 

“I know the advantage your father has in knowing what’s really out there. And how much help your friends are but...Stanley has a point. We stood at the brink of world annihilation, faced off against demon gods and the destruction of reality itself, Stiles.” Ford began, in hopes of Stiles understanding their point.

 

“We did...and we survived.” Stiles said stubbornly. 

 

“We didn’t know you did!” Stan slammed his fist against the table. It gained them some stares but then they all turned away after Stan glared at them. He looked at Stiles and said. “After those eyeball bats turned your body to stone and carried you away, I thought you were still dead. I...I didn’t know how to explain that to the twins. To your father. And Bill only brought you back because he wanted to kill you again in front of us…”

 

“If you’re so worried about my safety why ask me to help at all? Huh?” Stiles demanded. 

 

The twins shared a look, and Stiles didn’t like it.

 

“What?” Stiles demanded again. 

 

“Stan didn’t tell me about what happened to you until recently. And then you mentioned your possession run in with the Nogitsune and Bill, and talking about your manifested self...considering this creature wasn’t there before...and…” Ford stopped, unable to find a good way to say the rest.

 

“And  _ what _ ? What?”  

 

“This thing had your face, kid.” Stan said plainly. 

 

“Considering our lives...I don’t think it’s a coincidence.” Ford added. 

 

Stiles’s blood ran cold. “Wha...what...what does that mean exactly?”

 

“I don’t know. I wanted to stop this by myself. But I couldn’t. I asked Stan for help but we couldn’t get near it either...and it had your face Stiles. It always did. We don’t know why. But we’re going to figure it out.”

 

“But if we can’t, and this thing is just stuck. We’ll leave it there and get you as far away from danger as possible.” Stan said. 

 

“This is my home...and Gravity Falls is my home away from home. And I’m a Pines by blood.So deal with it. We’ll find a solution.”

* * *

 

 

-=~=-

"Are we going to tell Derek any of this?" Cora asked.

"He's being weird. Even for him. I think we should just keep an eye on this ourselves." Peter said as he scrolled through his phone. 

Looking over, seeing Peter on Stiles's Facebook, she asked. "What are you doing?"

"Research. I'm seeing who this Wendy might be..and I think I found her. Looks like Stiles likes redheads."

"Stalker."

"Researching."

"What is the point of looking into the people Stiles likes?" Cora asked with arms crossed and a raised eyebrow.

"Once my research is done, you'll know."

* * *

 

 

“Where have you been?” Derek asked as Cora entered the loft with Peter.

 

“Stalking.”   
“Researching.”

 

Cora and Peter answered at the same time, respectfully. They stared at each other, a silent conversation passing between them before going into different parts. Peter went to the wall to plug in his phone. He opened his messages and hoped to find a reply from Malia but there was none. Cora went to the fridge and grabbed something to drink.

 

“Dare I ask who you were stalking?” Derek asked.

 

“Who else?” Peter asked with a scoff. 

 

Derek sighed, “There’s no point in stalking Stiles. If we need to know anything, we just ask him. It’s not like he can lie to us, nor is it something he does.”

 

“Oh god, you’ve got it bad.” Peter muttered. Louder, he said. “No worries. All we found out was that he’s got some girlfriend in Gravity Falls. A redhead named Wendy.”

 

Derek froze and stared at his uncle with widen eyes and a disbelieving look. “Th-they’re friends. They...they are not, no, not dating...heh,” Derek scoffed out a snort, “you’re not even good at stalking because you can’t get information right.”

 

“I understand people more than you. I need to, to manipulate them. I know intimacy between people on the phone when I hear it.” Peter said with an eye roll. 

 

Derek was quiet for a moment, and when Peter looked up at him he was looking into the mirror and running a hand through his hair. 

 

“Was it something I said?” Peter asked him with a raised eyebrow. 

 

Derek was quiet for a moment before he turned to his uncle. “We’re here in my loft.”

 

“Excellent deduction, Sherlock.” Peter drawled, “What’s your point?”

 

“What will the family think?” Derek asked, wanting the conversation to not fall on him and his people skills. Or him and Stiles. 

 

“That we had to live in a cruel world without them and have seen some shit.” Peter answered. 

 

“Mom and dad understand Derek. What Peter said is the crude version, but it’s still true.” Cora added as she opened a water bottle and then took a sip. “I’ve asked Laura but she doesn’t know when. I know it’s something we may not want to bring up but...what do we tell mom about Laura’s death?”

 

Peter tensed a bit and just looked at his niece and nephew and didn’t say anything. This was a slight difference in the person he’s become and the person he used to be when the pack was still alive. As much as he hated himself, he cared about what his pack thought of him. He did a lot of insane things in his hysterical mindset...killing Laura being one of those things. But all he wanted during that time was to rebuild his pack. Now his pack was back and though before he was a troublemaking scoundrel...he wasn’t a bad guy. Not to the extent he was now. 

 

Killing anyone is enough to have him thrown in prison...killing the Alpha’s eldest daughter and rightful alpha heir was a death sentence or at least exile. Peter didn’t know which one was worse. 

 

“What does Laura say?” Derek asked when Peter remained silent. 

 

“She wants to wait. She doesn’t want us to rock the boat.” Peter replied. When they looked at him he looked away and shrugged. “We’ve talked.”

 

“And?” Cora persuaded. 

 

“I told her sooner or later, with all this info gathering happening on all sides, someone is bound to tell her. I think she should hear it from me.” Peter answered honestly.

 

“So...you’re going to tell her?” Derek asked, unsure how to feel about it. In a similar way that his feelings were conflicted about Peter through the years. Yeah, he’s an asshole who has been the enemy in a few situations, but he was still family. 

 

“I am.” 

 

“When?” Cora asked.

 

“Soon.” Peter replied cryptically. 

* * *

 

-=~=-

“Sam, did you buy everything?” Talia called out to her husband as everyone helped bring in the groceries. The cookout will be the following day and they wanted to start marinating certain things while beginning to smoke certain meats. 

 

“Yes, darling. And if I didn’t, I’ll just go get whatever’s missing.” Sam replied as he brought in a box of grillable veggies. 

 

Talia leaned in and kissed her husband. “Good work, love. Now, have you seen Derek? I want to ask him if he knows what Stiles and his family prefer in side foods.”

 

“He was hanging out with Alice today. I think. But I don’t hear them. Oh wait, I think that’s Alice’s car pulling up.” Sam said. 

 

“Everyone’s working their butts off for this cookout, sis. We’re all over the place.” Jared said as he passed with an ax over his shoulder, heading towards the back to go chop up firewood. 

 

“Mom, can you open the door? My hands are full.” Derek said from the other side.

 

“Yes, of course! Anything I can help bring iii-oh god, you’re hair!”

 

Luna ran by to see what the commotion was about and when she saw Derek’s hair she squealed and pointed to his head, “Derek! You’re a Weasley!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished writing this, forcing myself to write more, at around 4:30 in the morning. So there will be mistakes. There might be continuity errors...I will do my best to fix at a later time. I just wanted to update. 
> 
> I'm working on getting someone to draw this scene because yes...Derek has dyed his hair red. (For a bit). It's going to continue on into the next chapter of course, and I've got some artist friends who I'm asking but...who knows what will happen. If there's any fan art, I'll let you guys know.
> 
> Also, if the format looks weird/different than previous chapters, there's a reason. Normally I just type on the AO3 site document. Today I wrote it on Google Docs.


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